Allstate no longer suspended in Florida

Just days after Allstate was issued a suspension in Florida, Allstate can now once again write new policies in the state. Allstate sent an emergency motion for immediate relief to the appeals judge and it was granted.

The commissioner had previously suspended Allstate's authority to do business in Florida, and now he says that this is just another step in the process that enables Allstate to further delay production of the documents requested, and Allstate's motion was not unexpected.

He also says he remains committed to Florida's consumers and will get to the bottom of this issue, and take every action necessary to protect Florida consumers.

Allstate was pleased with the Florida First District Court of Appeal's decision to grant an immediate stay from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation's order to cease writing new business.

This ruling now allows Allstate's more than 1,100 Florida agents and employees to continue to create jobs and serve their community.

Florida suspends AllState from writing new policies

Florida Insurance Commissioner, McCarty, announced he has suspended Allstate from writing new policies in Florida until they comply with the subpoenas served Oct. 15. Allstate was supposed to provide appropriate documents before Tuesday's hearing, but instead sent 51 pages of objections to the subpoenas.

The suspension applies to all Allstate companies in Florida from writing new policies. Existing policyholders will not be affected and policy renewals will not be affected. Only new business is affected. The suspension will be lifted when the commissioner has received the documents the state needs to investigate the important issues before them.

The commissioner says he was troubled by Allstate not complying with the subpoenas and not willing to explain their relationship with rating agencies, modeling companies and trade groups, and how these relationships might have influenced the huge rate increases they have requestioned. This is the first time Florida has suspended a company for failure to freely provide documents as required by Florida law.

Allstate responded to the FL Office of Regulation in a statement. Allstate was surprised at the OIR's actions and since receiving the subpoenas, Allstate has produced nearly 40,000 pages of information and will continue to produce responsive documents. At this time, it is not clear how this action will affect Allstate or the more than 1,100 Allstate agents in Florida.

PIP Insurance returns to Florida

Florida will once again require drivers to carry personal injury protection (PIP) insurance effective January 1st, 2008.

As part of the legislation, insurance companies must notify policyholders how the mandatory restoration of PIP/no-fault will impact them.

If a policyholder fails to maintain PIP coverage, the law requires your insurance carrier to cancel your policy and inform the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

Florida DHSMV may then suspend the policyholder's driver license and vehicle registration.

After the law changed in October, some people chose not to keep personal injury protection insurance, but many opted to keep it. Be sure to check your policy to make sure you have PIP coverage.

http://www.myfloridacfo.com/NoFault/
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/article/10971

Florida home insurance getting better

Over the last few years, home insurance in Florida has become either unaffordable or difficult to get at all. This is why the state of Florida created Citizens Property Insurance Corp in 2002, which they call the state's insurer of last resort.

Recently, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation announced that it is allowing four companies to take over 173,000 policies from the state's insurer. The private insurers will be offering rates that are lower than Citizens' current rates.

Consumers will be notified beginning Nov. 7 and give customers option of declining and keeping their Citizens' policies. From 2003 to 2006 Florida has returned nearly half a million policyholders to private insurers.

The four insurers participating in this take over are American Integrity Insurance Company, Landmark One Insurance Company, First Home Insurance Company, and Argus Fire and Casualty Insurance Company.

The good news is private insurers believe they can be profitable in Florida and consumers can get lower rates.

Florida's Tool for Comparing Homeowners Insurance

While I realize not everyone is from Florida nor a homeowner, I found that this tool demonstrates the importance of shopping around for insurance quotes, no matter where you live. The state of Florida created a tool to compare homeowners insurance in Florida where you can easily click on your county and compare the average rates of different companies.

I looked around this website myself. I found that in some counties, rates varied $600 to $1,300 which really isn't a lot, but substantial. However, in the coastal areas, insurer's rates varied from $1,700 to $7,000 and that is a lot. Please note, if you are in Florida and using this tool, not all companies listed may be writing new policies.

The launch of this website was sometime in June, according to a press release from the Florida's governor. To use the tool you go to ShopandCompareRates.com and then scroll down and click on compare homeowners insurance rates. Note to others, regardless of where you live or type of insurance, you could save a bundle by shopping around.