Senator Mike Fasano (R-New Port Richey) is working to head off sinkhole rate increases of over 2,200 percent in Orlando, if the Office of Insurance Regulation gives the nod to Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state’s largest property insurer.
The property insurance company has requested rate increases for sinkhole coverage that average nearly 450 percent.
Fasano wants changes made in the law earlier this year which removed caps, to be repealed next year and has called for a special session to consider heading off the rate increase. However, he acknowledged Monday that a special session might not happen.
“Right now, my goal is to convince OIR not to approve those rate increases,” he said.
Previously, there was a limit of 10 percent on annual increases in the company’s rates.
“That was done so people who were forced to have Citizens were not forced to have the large increases like we’re having now,” said Fasano, whose Senate district north of Tampa Bay is the area in the state that has seen the biggest increases in sinkhole claims. “They took the cap off and now we’re seeing the results. I believe we should, at the minimum, we should at least go back in there and put the cap back on so Citizens cannot be granted 2,200 percent increases.”
