State Farm homeowners' insurance cuts deal with Florida....

[madfloridian]

They will raise rates 14.8 percent and drop 125,000 homeowner policies according to hurricane risk. One good part is that their agents will be able to sell policies from other sources to those who are dropped...thus keeping them from being dumped on the state plan.

State Farm, state cut deal: 14.8 percent rate hike, 125,000 cancellations

They have over 800,000 policies state wide.

State Farm Florida, the state's largest private insurer, will continue insuring property in the state after cutting a deal with regulators that grants a 14.8 percent rate hike and the cancellation of 125,000 policies.

First notification of non-renewals from among State Farm's 810,000 policyholders won't start until February and homeowners’ customers will have six months to find other coverage, State Farm said. Regulators said the cancelations will be based on hurricane-risk assessments.

“This is an important step. It helps stem State Farm Florida’s deteriorating financial condition. It reduces the company’s risk exposure. It moves us closer to rate adequacy,” said Jim Thompson, State Farm Florida's president, in a statement. “This was not easy for any of us. We were losing $20 million a month and we both were trying to work through some tough issues,” said Thompson.

..."Insurance Commission Kevin McCarty said today a key provision of the deal is State Farm's concession to allow its agents to sell canceled policyholders coverage from 16 other companies

"They have agreed to allow their agents . . . to enter into servicing agreements (with other companies) . . . hopefully that will move those policies into a company that is ready, willing and able to insure those policyholders," McCarty said. That will help keep canceled policyholders out of state-run Citizens insurance, the underfunded largest property insurer in the state.

[madfloridian]

1. Kick for Floridians who are interested.

Not sure if it is good or bad, but I guess it is better than dropping all the home owners.

[NightWatcher]

2. we were about to have to go shopping for a new policy

I guess we'll stay with them for a few months until we can find better (if we can). State Farm has been a little more expensive, btu when we've had issues, they've fixed them fast. we had a pipe burst and they had a check the next day and allowed themselves to be direct billed by the company who cleaned up for us.

[madfloridian]

3. Now we wait to see which 125, 000 they will drop.

I would imagine coastal areas will be affected the most, but I wonder about older houses like ours.

[Dappleganger]

4. They'll probably keep us.

We're not in a very high-risk area and have a newer home, but still it's a PIA to have to shop around for coverage.

I have mixed feelings about SF and was kind of hoping we'd have to switch but we'll probably stay w/them for now.