Report: Florida’s Workers’ Comp Market is Competitive

A new report released by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation concludes the state’s workers’ compensation insurance market is competitive.

The report, based on data from 2008, shows the Florida market features 251 entities writing workers’ compensation insurance — 246 private insurers, four self-insurance funds, and the Florida Workers’ Compensation Joint Underwriting Association (FWCJUA). The residual market, the FWCJUA, had 826 policies as of November 2009 with corresponding premiums of $5.7 million. This is a fraction of Florida’s overall workers’ compensation premium, which reported a total of $2.3 billion in written premium in 2008, ranking Florida fifth nationally.

“The 2009 report clearly demonstrates that Florida’s 2003 legislative reforms, combined with the Legislature’s passage of House Bill 903 that restored caps on attorney’s fees, have continued to lead to declines in workers’ compensation rates and stability in the marketplace,” said Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty. “This is especially important for Florida businesses given the current economic environment.”

In October, Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty issued a final order approving the National Council on Compensation Insurance’s (NCCI) amended rate filing for workers’ compensation insurance rates to become effective Jan. 1. The 6.8 percent rate decrease marked the seventh annual consecutive drop in workers’ compensation rates – a cumulative 63.2 percent decline since the Florida Legislature passed sweeping reforms in 2003.

Topics Florida Workers' Compensation