Update for 3/20/2009:

                                                    F.A.I.R. for Collier
                                        Fighting Against Insurance Rates

After 15 years of trying to use state regulations, financial and insurance mechanisms to ensure availability and affordability for residential property insurance, the state realizes it hasn’t found the final solution to the issue.  During this year’s general session of the legislature they will revisit property insurance again.

Let’s just take a quick look at the last few years of change to the property insurance law.

In January 2007 there was a special legislative session just to discuss and create a law to bring down the sky rocketing property insurance rates. Many things were accomplished during that session, most especially was Citizens Property Insurance rates were frozen to 2009 and then later extended to 2010.

In 2008 there was some fine tuning of the previously written bill.  A Task Force was formed to study ways to return Citizens Property Insurance to its original role as a non-competitive residential market mechanism.  Citizens receive 50,000 new applicants each month.  At present there are about 1.1 million policy holders.  Approximately 400,000 policies have been taken out of Citizens by other private companies.  These companies must hold these policies for at least 3 years at rates no greater than Citizens.  Citizens Wind Only policies are not being renewed.  You must reapply for eligibility for a new policy.  They are mainly looking at roofs, but do have some other criteria as well. If your home is in a wind-borne area and has an insured value of $750,000 or more you must have all openings brought up to the new FL building code.  In 2011 this will be a requirement for all insurance companies.   If a home is insured with Citizens, as of January 1, 2010, anyone wishing to purchase a home located in the wind-borne area with an insured value of $500,000 or more, must be provided a windstorm mitigation rating prior to the contract for sale and purchase. If Citizens incurs a deficit it may assess each of its policyholders 15% per account; may levy a 6% per account on all other private insured policies.  If more money is needed in an emergency, a 10% assessment may be assessed on all policies.

The Task Force is suggesting to the legislature the following:

1.      Annual premiums be raised on a statewide average to 10% a year for the next 3 years beginning in 2010.

2.      The increase by territory to be no more than 15%

3.      An increase to no more than 20% a year for individual Citizens policyholders.

4.      Prohibit Citizens form insuring new homes and condominiums near the coast.

5.      Enforce the 15% rule. If a private insurance company offer you a policy less than 15% of Citizens rate, then you must take it.

6.      Require Citizens policy holders to take the takeout offer from private carriers.

My Safe Florida Home – The state was offering free wind inspections to all single-family home owners.  The funding has hit a low and therefore they had to put this program on hold; however, I have been told that there may be a few inspections still available.  The legislature will be discussing increased funding for this program.

State Farm Insurance

As most of you know State Farm is pulling out of the state of Florida.  They became angry with the OIR when they would not give them a 47% increase in rates in September.  The OIR also told them they had to issue credits or refunds up to $120 million to current or former policy holders who did not apply for or who did not receive  wind loss mitigation credits and they must also pay $1 million in penalties.

Allstate was told to take on 100,000 new policy holders.

2009

At the beginning of 2009 a new condo insurance bill was created which makes it mandatory to have interior insurance and if a unit owner doesn’t get the insurance then the association is responsible for getting it and then bill the owner for the amount.  There has been so much confusion and dissention over this bill that I feel sure that it will either be repealed or amended.

WHAT IS F.A.I.R DOING NOW?

Rebuild

After hurricane Ivan in 2004 hit the Panhandle area in the NW section of FL, a program call Rebuild of NW FL was established in January 2005.

It began as a grass roots group and then became a non -profit organization. Private citizens, government, private businesses, faith based groups, social services and builders got together to organize Rebuild.  It provides homeowners to fortify their homes against a CAT 3 hurricane. For every dollar spent to mitigate a home, $4 to $16 are saved and helps to reduce insurance rates.  The idea is to harden against hurricanes; not repair after hurricane.  This program would be for homes built before 2002 and would have to be site built single family homes.  This group received 2 state grants through My Safe Florida Home and grants from FEMA.  F.A.I.R. is trying to get business leaders, private citizens and local government together to organize.  We have names from the state to contact and guide us through this program; however, F.A.I.R. is not capable of taking on such a large project.  We want to be the catalyst to get it organized. 

In September 2006, the current president of F.A.I.R, Bobbie Dusek, attended the Florida Association of Realtors state convention. While at the convention, she sat in on a presentation by a representative from Monroe County on property insurance. Knowing that insurance rates were at a crisis level in Florida, she was amazed at how residents of Monroe County banded together to fight for their rights. Given this success story, she was bound and determined to take this model and apply it to Collier County.

On October 5, 2006 a group of fourteen Collier County citizens met to establish a grass roots effort to fight insurance rates in the County. The organization was named F.A.I.R. for Collier which is the acronym for "Fighting Against Insurance Rates."

To date of this writing, F.A.I.R. has grown to almost a two thousand of concerned citizens. It is a 501 (c) 4 incorporated non for profit organization. A board of directors was established .

F.A.I.R. representatives have interacted with County Commissioners, State Legislators and community groups, home owner and condo associations, Board of Realtors and the Chamber of Commerce. The County Commissioners have funded money for an actuary and an insurance attorney. The actuary has begun his research. It will take months to put together.

A F.A.I.R. member who has an extensive background in research is developing a "hurricane model" just for Collier County. This will be used in conjunction with the information from the actuary.

The president of F.A.I.R. attended the Special Session in Tallahassee, FL set - up by Governor Christ on insurance reform. She spoke before the Senate Bank and Insurance Committee. She also went back to Tallahassee for the General Session.

We believe our initial efforts helped influence the legislature to draft a new insurance reform bill in January, 2007 which in turn the Governor signed into law.

We will continue to stay vigilant for as long as it take to get a permanent property insurance bill which will be "fair" to the citizens of Florida, i.e. Collier County.
5/1/07