The James Madison Institute (JMI) has released a new report titled “Hold the Line: Florida’s Insurance Reforms and the Path Ahead,” authored by JMI Senior Fellow Christian Cámara. The report urges lawmakers to maintain the recent reforms in Florida's property insurance market, which have begun to show positive effects less than a year after their implementation.
“Florida policymakers made great progress in the past year to address the challenges faced in our property insurance market – challenges that have festered for 20 years. Like any major reform, redirecting our insurance market to a better trajectory will not happen overnight. Insurance markets need time to respond favorably to reforms, and our litigation environment needs time to cycle through the thousands of lawsuits filed prior to the 2023 reforms being signed into law. We urge our policymakers to stay the course in their efforts ahead,” said Sal Nuzzo, Senior Vice President of The James Madison Institute.
Cámara emphasized that while geography and weather are uncontrollable factors affecting property insurance in Florida, litigation is an area where influence can be exerted. He noted that although significant reforms were enacted last year, translating these changes into premium relief for consumers will take time due to the backlog of lawsuits filed before the 2023 reforms.
“Property insurance in Florida is about geography, weather, and litigation. We can’t control the first two of those. We can influence our litigation environment. While thanks are absolutely owed to policymakers and the Governor for the aggressive reforms over the past year, translating those reforms into premium relief will unfortunately take time. Insurance is risk mitigation, and the flood of lawsuits filed in advance of the reforms of 2023 have to wind their way through the system before the market can adjust in ways consumers see. We hope policymakers hold the line on the efforts and improvements they made in 2023,” Cámara stated.
The full report is available for public reading on JMI's website.
The James Madison Institute is a non-profit organization focused on promoting limited government, economic freedom, federalism, individual liberty, and responsibility. The institute conducts research on various issues including criminal justice, health care, taxes, and regulatory environments.