Florida Property Insurance Reforms To Lead To Major Hurdles For Policyholders

In the aftermath of Hurricane Ian and the great devastation it caused, Florida policyholders will face new and substantial hurdles when seeking to obtain any insurance coverage in 2023, particularly insurance for losses sustained by future hurricanes. On Dec. 16, 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a bill, SB 2A (identical to HB 1A, hereinafter referred to as the “Legislation”), which will completely reform and overhaul how policyholders in the state of Florida are able to obtain, or rather not obtain, property insurance coverage in the aftermath of losses such as those sustained from Hurricane Ian. House sponsor of the Legislation, Tom Leek (Republican from Ormond Beach), proudly stated that this new Legislation represents the “biggest, meatiest, beefiest property insurance reform legislation that the state has ever seen.” While the Legislation originally was touted to other members of the House and the public as a means of reducing litigation costs, speeding up the claims process, and preventing “fraudulent claims,” the reality is that this Legislation will harm individual and corporate policyholders in the state of Florida by reducing the availability of insurance, increasing the cost of insurance, and making it much more challenging for a policyholder to enforce and collect on their valid claims against their insurers in the aftermath of losses such as those sustained by Hurricane Ian.