Latest Florida Headlines

All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.

NHC Report Ranks Ian as Costliest Florida Hurricane, Shows Forecasting, Storm Surge

Apr 4 2023 // The National Hurricane Center’s report on Hurricane Ian, posted Monday, six months after the storm hit southwest Florida, pegs Ian as the most expensive to hit the Sunshine State, causing twice as much damage as...

Florida DWC Gives Long-Awaited Nod to Surgical Center Reimbursement Manual

Apr 3 2023 // After almost three years of hearings, workshops and debate between insurers and medical centers, the Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation has given final approval to the 2020 reimbursement manual for ambulatory...

Florida Governor Turns Heads with Comment that Citizens Insurance is ‘Not Solvent,’ Just as Board Approves Catastrophe Bond

Apr 3 2023 // Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis raised some questions when he suggested that Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state-created insurer, has “not been solvent” and may be unable to pay all claims from a major...

Whipped Cream Vodka Not so Sweet for Florida Woman Linked to False Insurance Claims

Mar 31 2023 // A broken bottle of whipped cream-flavored vodka may have turned into a just dessert for an Orlando-area woman who allegedly filed false insurance claims.Florida authorities announced Thursday that Anita Jovic, of Seminole...

Florida Regulators Now Reviewing Rate Hikes of 14%, 62% and 103%

Mar 31 2023 // Three Florida insurance carriers, one large and two small, are seeking approval for major rate increases, with one condominium policy increase as high as 103%.Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s board of...

Toxic Connection Not Proven, Appeals Court Finds in Florida Cancer Suit vs. Raytheon

Mar 30 2023 // In closely watched and widely publicized toxic-tort litigation that has percolated through the courts for more than a decade, federal appeals judges this week underscored the strict standard that expert witnesses are held...

In Filing With Regulators, Florida Citizens Wants Appraisers to Be Licensed Adjusters

Mar 28 2023 // Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has weighed in on a question that could shake up the appraisal process in Florida insurance claims disputes, urging state regulators to require that appraisers be licensed adjusters.In a...

Unlicensed Roofing Contractor in Florida Charged After Soliciting Homeowners

Mar 27 2023 // Florida authorities on Friday charged a man with unlicensed contracting, insurance fraud and failing to obtain workers’ compensation coverage on his workers, after he solicited Tampa-area homeowners for roof...

25,000 Lawsuits by Today? Florida Plaintiff Firms Rushing to File Before Tort-Reform Bill Signed into Law

Mar 23 2023 // The Florida Senate approved a take-no-prisoners tort-reform bill Thursday and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed it into law Friday.The bill, which extends limits on one-way attorney fees, assignments of benefits, and other...

Florida Insurance Agent Who Used $5M in Premiums for Safari, Condos Gets 14 Years

Mar 23 2023 // More than 18 months after he pleaded guilty to absconding with almost $5 million in premiums, a Florida insurance agent has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.John M. Thomas, 52, the former owner of Thomas Insurance...

With Sex Assault Cases on the Rise, Insurers Tighten Hospital Liability Exclusions

Mar 22 2023 // South Floridians may remember the case of a patient at Westchester General Hospital in Miami, who said she was sexually assaulted by a hospital worker on New Year’s Eve in 2019 while she was sedated. The...

Boaters Did Not Survive After Trying to Rescue Woman, Florida Sheriff Says

Mar 21 2023 // Two men were found dead after a boating incident on a central Florida lake near the Legoland theme park.Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said at a news conference that the two men had jumped into Lake Eloise Saturday to save...

Orderly Runoff Didn’t Work; Florida’s United P&C Now Insolvent, Headed for Liquidation

Mar 20 2023 // Just days after some 90,000 policies from troubled United Property & Casualty Insurance Co. were transferred to Slide Insurance as part of a wind-down of the carrier, it was announced that UPC is officially broke and...

Florida House, Senate Committees Advance Slightly Different Tort-Reform Measures

Mar 17 2023 // A Florida bill that would clamp further limits on attorney fees and litigation passed another Senate committee Thursday, moving it closer to a Senate floor vote.Senate Bill 236, sponsored by Sen. Travis Hutson, R-Palm...

Carolina Town to Phase Out Golf Carts on Streets; Florida Lawmakers Want Age Limit

Mar 16 2023 // A beach town in North Carolina is cracking down on golf carts on city streets, after the number of carts, unlicensed drivers and accidents has grown in recent years.The Port City Daily newspaper reported that the town...

Florida Lobbying Firm Hires Altmaier as Lobbyist and Consultant

Mar 16 2023 // Former Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier has been hired as a lobbyist and consultant by one of the largest and most influential lobbying firms in the state, The Southern Group, the company announced.The...

Amendment to Florida Tort-Reform Would Grant One-Way Attorney Fees in Some Cases

Mar 15 2023 // A sponsor of a far-reaching Florida tort-reform bill warned last week that the measure, unlike previously adopted insurance legislation, is subject to change as it moves through the House and the Senate.On Tuesday, that...

Update: Florida Bill to End AOBs in Windshield Repair Inches Closer to Finish Line

Mar 15 2023 // Auto insurance and tort-reform groups are keeping their fingers crossed after a second Florida House subcommittee approved a bill that would ban assignment-of-benefits agreements for windshield repairs, a measure that...

Festival Canceled, Businesses Interrupted as Red Tide, Brown Seaweed Hit Florida

Mar 14 2023 // Residents are complaining about burning eyes and breathing problems. Dead fish have washed up. A beachside festival has been canceled, even though it wasn’t scheduled for another month. To add to the misery, a giant...

Credit Outlook for Allstate’s Florida Unit is Negative, Reflects Deteriorated Surplus

Mar 14 2023 // The AM Best financial rating firm’s tepid outlook for Allstate’s Florida subsidiaries, Castle Key Insurance Co. and Castle Key Indemnity Co., has raised new questions about the subsidiaries’ and their...