It doesn’t matter if the house is run down, high end or in between. It doesn’t matter if it is on the coast or inland.
What matters is the cost of repairing and replacing homes in the region. This conversation has morphed away from that basic principle into something very subjective. If it cost a lot to insure homes in an area, any area, for any reason, then I would expect housing prices to adjust downward slightly to account for that. If the insurance element of the equation is too expensive then folks can, will and should adjust. By the way, that is the message lawmakers in Florida should be passing along instead of ‘poor poor pitiful you’all’.
The only aspect of this subject that concerns government is whether or not homes are built to code. And if an insurer pays out and then finds proof that relatively new homes have not been built to code, they should sue (subrogate) the municipality that allows that out-of-compliance condition to exist.
Collect from the cities who aren’t inspecting new construction and through subrogation reduce the cost of insurance.
Now there is something that the governer may want to take responsibility for – overseeing government.
I am sitting here in Illinois after shoveling snow for the nth time in a few months dreaming about a warm climate. But I choose to live here and subject myself, family, home, etc to the risks that are here. Although I emphasize with the Floridians I don’t think it is write for the Illinois policyholders to pay more so that the Floridians don’t have to pay for the risk. My in laws live inland in FL and suffered loss by one of the hurricanes. He has a $300,000 home and his insurance is about a grand per year. If you live in a high risk area or do high risk work or drive high risk vehicles, you need to pay the price. Florida, quit complaining.
A quick review of this post shows why insurance companies need to leave Florida and soon. Let them take care of their own disasters in the future with flimsy market arrangements, start up companies and inadequate reinsurance. Good luck Floridians.
Heaven forbid the company make more than a REASONABLE profit! I mean, its not like this is capitalism, free market, etc. SF has every right to choose how they do business in the state. Unfortunately, Crist and his croonies have made the environment very hostile. Also, can we make sure you always and forever make ONLY a REASONABLE profit at your job? Whatever that is.
Comment:
When there’s a disaster, the companies homeowners count on to protect them from financial ruin routinely pay less than what policies promise. Insurers often pay 20-40 percent of the cost of rebuilding a damaged home–even when carriers assure homeowners they’re fully covered, thousands of complaints with state insurance departments and civil court cases show.
Paying out less to victims of catastrophes has helped produce record profits. In the past 12 years, insurance company net income has soared–even in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Property- casualty insurers, which cover damage to homes and cars, reported their highest- ever profit of $73 billion last year, up 49 percent from $49 billion in 2005, according to Highline Data LLC, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm that compiles insurance industry data.
The 60 million U.S. homeowners who pay more than $50 billion a year in insurance premiums are often disappointed when they discover insurers won’t pay the full cost of rebuilding their damaged or destroyed homes. Property insurers systematically deny and reduce their policyholders’ claims, according to court records in California, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, New Hampshire and Tennessee. The insurance companies routinely refuse to pay market prices for homes and replacement contents, they use computer programs to cut payouts, they change policy coverage with no clear explanation, they ignore or alter engineering reports, and they sometimes
That the Florida politicians have made such a mess of things…how can anyone sayn this is unexpected? First Allstate, now State Farm….who’s next? And just in case anyone wants to get on their soap box and preach…capitalism does not mandate that anyone MUST sell anything, it only tries to make competition the mover and shaker for prices….Florida can’t have it both ways…
I’m no big fan of State Farm but they are the largest home market in Florida. In some ways, it seems like having the most policies, when other companies are leaving entirely, fulfills some type of civic or public responsibility. Doesn’t it? They still offer one of the broadest policy forms compared to the new startups as well. Regardless of rate level and their newest underwriting action, I say give them some latitude until someone else wants to step up and say “we want to be #1 in Florida”. Won’t happen.
Massachusetts legislators monkey’d so badly with personal auto in the 70’s & 80’s that there were only a few auto insurance companies left! Premiums were some of the highest in the US.
It has taken over 20 years to undo that legislative damage in Mass. Florida could learn a valuable lesson from Massachusetts auto.
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It doesn’t matter if the house is run down, high end or in between. It doesn’t matter if it is on the coast or inland.
What matters is the cost of repairing and replacing homes in the region. This conversation has morphed away from that basic principle into something very subjective. If it cost a lot to insure homes in an area, any area, for any reason, then I would expect housing prices to adjust downward slightly to account for that. If the insurance element of the equation is too expensive then folks can, will and should adjust. By the way, that is the message lawmakers in Florida should be passing along instead of ‘poor poor pitiful you’all’.
The only aspect of this subject that concerns government is whether or not homes are built to code. And if an insurer pays out and then finds proof that relatively new homes have not been built to code, they should sue (subrogate) the municipality that allows that out-of-compliance condition to exist.
Collect from the cities who aren’t inspecting new construction and through subrogation reduce the cost of insurance.
Now there is something that the governer may want to take responsibility for – overseeing government.
I am sitting here in Illinois after shoveling snow for the nth time in a few months dreaming about a warm climate. But I choose to live here and subject myself, family, home, etc to the risks that are here. Although I emphasize with the Floridians I don’t think it is write for the Illinois policyholders to pay more so that the Floridians don’t have to pay for the risk. My in laws live inland in FL and suffered loss by one of the hurricanes. He has a $300,000 home and his insurance is about a grand per year. If you live in a high risk area or do high risk work or drive high risk vehicles, you need to pay the price. Florida, quit complaining.
A quick review of this post shows why insurance companies need to leave Florida and soon. Let them take care of their own disasters in the future with flimsy market arrangements, start up companies and inadequate reinsurance. Good luck Floridians.
My last post was in response to the post by GT. Sorry.
GT,
Heaven forbid the company make more than a REASONABLE profit! I mean, its not like this is capitalism, free market, etc. SF has every right to choose how they do business in the state. Unfortunately, Crist and his croonies have made the environment very hostile. Also, can we make sure you always and forever make ONLY a REASONABLE profit at your job? Whatever that is.
Comment:
When there’s a disaster, the companies homeowners count on to protect them from financial ruin routinely pay less than what policies promise. Insurers often pay 20-40 percent of the cost of rebuilding a damaged home–even when carriers assure homeowners they’re fully covered, thousands of complaints with state insurance departments and civil court cases show.
Paying out less to victims of catastrophes has helped produce record profits. In the past 12 years, insurance company net income has soared–even in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Property- casualty insurers, which cover damage to homes and cars, reported their highest- ever profit of $73 billion last year, up 49 percent from $49 billion in 2005, according to Highline Data LLC, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm that compiles insurance industry data.
The 60 million U.S. homeowners who pay more than $50 billion a year in insurance premiums are often disappointed when they discover insurers won’t pay the full cost of rebuilding their damaged or destroyed homes. Property insurers systematically deny and reduce their policyholders’ claims, according to court records in California, Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, New Hampshire and Tennessee. The insurance companies routinely refuse to pay market prices for homes and replacement contents, they use computer programs to cut payouts, they change policy coverage with no clear explanation, they ignore or alter engineering reports, and they sometimes
That the Florida politicians have made such a mess of things…how can anyone sayn this is unexpected? First Allstate, now State Farm….who’s next? And just in case anyone wants to get on their soap box and preach…capitalism does not mandate that anyone MUST sell anything, it only tries to make competition the mover and shaker for prices….Florida can’t have it both ways…
I’m no big fan of State Farm but they are the largest home market in Florida. In some ways, it seems like having the most policies, when other companies are leaving entirely, fulfills some type of civic or public responsibility. Doesn’t it? They still offer one of the broadest policy forms compared to the new startups as well. Regardless of rate level and their newest underwriting action, I say give them some latitude until someone else wants to step up and say “we want to be #1 in Florida”. Won’t happen.
Massachusetts legislators monkey’d so badly with personal auto in the 70’s & 80’s that there were only a few auto insurance companies left! Premiums were some of the highest in the US.
It has taken over 20 years to undo that legislative damage in Mass. Florida could learn a valuable lesson from Massachusetts auto.
But…REMEMBER!!!! “SOMEONE HAS TO PAY!!!”
EVERYONE RIPPED ALLSTATE AND ALL THE OTHER COMPANIES WILL NOW ALL FOLLOW INT HE FOOTSTEPS.
TILL THE GOVT STEPS OUT, SAY HELL TO THESE CRAPPY NO-NAMED INSURANCE COMPANIES WITH BARELY ANYTHING IN RESERVES.