Michael Moline
State regulators approved premium increases Friday for commercial policies issued by Citizens Property Insurance Corp., including a nearly 12 percent increase for condominium association common property in wind-vulnerable coastal areas.
Premiums on those policies would increase by 11.9 percent effective Feb. 1. Citizens had sought an increase of 12 percent.
Multi-peril policies for other condo association common property will increase by 4.5 percent; and property not belonging to a condo association — but rather to some other form of ownership or homeowners’ associations — by 5.4 percent.
In coastal areas, premiums for wind-damage policies for nonresidential commercial properties — strip malls, for example — will increase by 9.8 percent. Similar policies away from the coast will see no increase.
For common areas in condominium complexes not controlled by an association, the increase is 11.2 percent.
The rate order released by the Florida Office of Insurance regulation does not affect the owners of individual condo units.
Commercial policies represent a relatively minor piece of business for the state-owned insurer of last resort — 19,041 policies out of 491,512 total.
In terms of risk exposure, Citizens’ commercial lines equal around $43.5 billion out of more than $135 billion in total exposure. The rest represents personal residential policies.
