Latest Florida Headlines

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

Florida Insurers Cry Foul Over Slide’s ‘Favored’ Treatment in St. Johns Insolvency

Mar 21 2022 // The news that a startup Florida insurance company will assume $400 million in policies from the now-insolvent St. Johns Insurance Co. – without input from other carriers – has set tongues wagging and emails...

Florida Bridgetender Arrested After Woman Fell to Her Death from Drawbridge

Mar 18 2022 // The operator of a drawbridge where a woman fell to her death last month was arrested Thursday, five weeks after the incident, according to South Florida news reports.Artissua Lafay Paulk, 43, of Greenacres, was charged...

NSI Acquires Florida-based HoneyQuote.com

Mar 18 2022 // NSI Insurance Group, one of the largest privately owned brokerage firms, announced it has acquired Florida-based HoneyQuote.com, a startup insurtech company that matches users with property insurers carriers in real...

Florida DFS Charges Two Roof Contractors in ‘Free Roof’ Scheme

Mar 17 2022 // The recent arrest of two men associated with a large Florida roofing company, on charges of offering “free roofs” and rebates to cover homeowners’ insurance deductibles, has met with strong reactions...

After Insurance, Condo Bills Fail, Florida Lawmakers Talking Special Session

Mar 14 2022 // The death knell sounded for the 2022 Florida Legislative session Friday with no major property insurance reform bills passed. But the ghosts of rising premiums and failing insurers will continue to haunt the state, and...

Florida Couple Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Supply Labor, Avoid Taxes and Comp Insurance

Mar 11 2022 // A Central Florida couple has pleaded guilty to fraud, conspiracy and underreporting payroll in a scheme that produced fake certificates of insurance for construction workers in order to reduce workers’ compensation...

AM Best Downgrades Outlook for Florida Family Insurance Companies

Mar 10 2022 // The AM Best rating firm has downgraded the credit rating and the outlook for Florida Family Insurance and its subsidiary, Florida Family Home Insurance Co.The rating firm said the companies’ long-term issuer credit...

Major Florida Insurance Bill Dies; Roof Provisions Left out of Second Bill

Mar 10 2022 // With just two days left in the 2022 Florida legislative session, a comprehensive property insurance reform bill appears to be dead. But lawmakers were said to be looking for ways to fold some of the main provisions into...

Florida Woman Charged with Comp Fraud After Faking Kidnapping

Mar 9 2022 // A Florida woman who said she was kidnapped, raped and thrown out of a vehicle last year has now been charged with insurance fraud. Alma Delia Duran, 54, of Summerfield, sparked a manhunt in March 2021 around Ocala, in...

Florida Class Action Wants Answer: Must Insurer Pay Attorney Fees for Pre-Suit Notices?

Mar 9 2022 // Florida’s Senate Bill 76, signed into law last June, was supposed to help reduce insurance claims litigation by making policyholders give 10-day notice before they file suit. The idea was to give insurers a little...

Avatar Becomes Second Florida Insurer to Face Insolvency This Year

Mar 8 2022 // Two weeks after St. Johns Insurance Co. was declared insolvent, Florida regulators have taken steps to begin liquidating Tampa-based Avatar Property & Casualty Insurance Co., making it the second carrier this year to...

Florida Panhandle Wildfire Forces Evac of Areas Still Recovering from Hurricane Michael

Mar 7 2022 // Hundreds of residents near Panama City, Florida, were forced to evacuate from a wildfire that destroyed at least two homes and damaged others in an area still recovering from Hurricane Michael in 2018.Local news sites...

UN Report Details Extent of Climate Change on Gulf Coast

Mar 7 2022 // Hurricane Harvey dumped more than 50 inches of rain on parts of the Texas coast in 2017. Then in 2020, ferocious winds from Hurricane Laura destroyed homes across coastal Louisiana. Hurricane Ida hit in 2021, leaving the...

Florida Insurers Crying Foul Over Slide’s ‘Favored’ Treatment in St. Johns Insolvency

Mar 7 2022 // The news that a startup Florida insurance company will assume $400 million in policies from the now-insolvent St. Johns Insurance Co. – without input from other carriers – has set tongues wagging and emails flying...

Declarations

Mar 7 2022 // “If economic pressures dampen pricing, or if catastrophes result in escalating losses owing to inflation, or if more dangerous strains of COVID-19 emerge, the combined ratio may trend higher.”— Michelle...

Florida Insurance Bill Passes Senate, But Chances in House Uncertain

Mar 4 2022 // The Florida Senate approved a bill that could limit many homeowners’ roof claims, which some insurers have called a major factor behind the state’s insurance crisis, but the bill’s future in the House...

Florida DFS Takes Action Against Public Adjuster Insurers Had Crossed With

Mar 4 2022 // After several months of investigation, Florida regulators have filed an official action against a public adjuster that insurance companies had complained about, a move that could soon lead to the suspension of his license...

Report: Nearly a Third of U.S. Hazardous Chemicals Facilities Exposed to Climate Change Dangers

Mar 3 2022 // A report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change stating that climate change is leading to increasingly irreversible impacts, with a narrowing window to adapt to it, is garnering a lot of reaction.The IPCC...

Florida Keys School Board Surprised by $400,000 Increase in Insurance Premiums

Mar 3 2022 // Florida homeowners aren’t the only ones feeling the pinch from sharply rising insurance premiums.School board members in the Florida Keys were taken aback this week when they were told that property insurance...

Fines on Public Adjuster Actions Would Double Under Bill Passed By Florida House

Mar 3 2022 // The Florida House of Representatives on Wednesday approved its version of a bill that would increase penalties for unlicensed public adjusters and would improve the digital insurance application process.House Bill 749,...