Senate passes bill increasing fines, regulation on insurers

Travis Hutson benefits from one generous address.

The Senate passed a bill hiking fines on property insurers that mishandle claims and imposing stricter deadlines in adjusting claims and regulatory guidelines.

The unanimous vote on SB 7052 on Wednesday comes just months after the Legislature passed legislation backed by insurers to crack down on frivolous lawsuits, which they said were driving their losses and forcing rates to skyrocket.

But after some insurers have sought rate increases despite the new law, including one asking for statewide hikes of more than 60%, legislators have moved to make sure property insurers aren’t wantonly denying claims with impunity.

“The goal of all of this activity has not been to benefit the insurance industry but rather to benefit policyholders,” said Sen. Travis Hutson, an Elkton Republican who sponsored the bill. “However, we have no desire to go from a system that enriches trial lawyers, to a system that incentivizes insurance companies to use the law to avoid paying claims that should be paid.”

The bill also requires insurers to submit their claims handling manuals to the Office of Insurance Regulation upon request to ensure compliance with the insurance code; bans altering an adjuster’s report without detailing why; bans an insolvent insurer from giving bonuses to their executives; requires more frequent reviews of companies by OIR; and adds 18 employees to OIR.

“Ultimately, every homeowner needs property insurance that is reliable and affordable,” said Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, a Naples Republican. “When disaster strikes, we want to make sure impacted Floridians can successfully navigate the claims process and be compensated for losses in a timely manner.”

The bill now heads to the House, which has a version of the bill (HB 7065) that trial lawyers have criticized for “not having teeth.” The House bill doesn’t require insurers to submit their claims handling manuals upon request, for example.

The House bill, though, does increase fines for insurers that mishandle claims, allow more time for military members serving overseas to file claims and require OIR to detail its enforcement actions against insurers on a quarterly basis.