Florida regulator says insurance market showing signs of stabilization after 2022 crisis
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Summary
Florida's insurance commissioner told the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee the market is improving after the 2022 crisis, citing falling Citizens enrollments, lower reinsurance costs on a risk'adjusted basis and enforcement actions that returned about $14.5 million to consumers.
Commissioner Michael Yacorsky of the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation told the Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance that state reforms and market changes have produced measurable improvements since the 2022 market crisis.
Yacorsky said Florida now has roughly 7,610,000 residential policies in force and cited an average statewide premium of about $2,755. He pointed to legislative changes, including tort reforms and the Insurer Accountability Act (Senate Bill 7052), as contributing to renewed carrier confidence and new market entrants.
The commissioner described the regulatory split between the Office of Insurance Regulation (which oversees certificates of authority, forms and rates in the admitted market and monitors solvency) and the Department of Financial Services (which handles agents, consumer services and fraud). He said the office has conducted "over 100 examinations" and "340 investigations" into insurer behavior, and that roughly $14,500,000 has been returned to consumers in restitution.
Yacorsky traced the market'level history from a 2013'115 period of strong performance through post'hurricane and litigation pressures that culminated in 2022's spike in Citizens enrollments. He said Citizens rose to about 1.41 million policies in 2022 and that the office expects Citizens'holdings to decline toward the low hundreds of thousands by early next year; he warned that too-rapid depopulation could expose Citizens to capital strain and potentially trigger assessments if a large storm occurs.
On reinsurance and pricing, Yacorsky said reinsurance remains a major cost driver in Florida but that reforms improved reinsurance buying and reduced risk'adjusted reinsurance costs in the recent period. He cautioned that uncertainty'for example, speculation about repealing reforms'can pause buying and push costs higher temporarily.
Yacorsky also recommended ongoing emphasis on home resiliency and targeted mitigation programs; he cited a county-level analysis showing an 86% difference in insurance cost between an unmitigated and a fully mitigated home in a cited Palm Beach County example.
The committee thanked the commissioner and asked questions; Yacorsky answered queries on wildfire impacts, flood insurance and other topics before the meeting was adjourned.
The presentation did not include any formal committee votes on legislation; the meeting adjourned by unanimous voice vote.