Intro
Over the course of the past 20 years, Floridian Partners has served as the head lobbying firm for the property and casualty section of the Florida Insurance Council. The FIC has served insurance companies and customers since 1962 and is currently Florida’s largest insurance trade association. During the 2011 legislative session, Floridian Partners helped FIC pass Senate Bill 408, a much needed reform of existing laws.
Objectives
- Facilitate the successful passing of Senate Bill 408
- Ensure that amendments introduced to the bill did not impact its original integrity
Action Taken
After the financial downturn in 2008, it was quite clear that extensive insurance reform was needed at a statewide level. Although Florida had experienced no recent hurricanes or natural disaster, property writers had been experiencing and reporting increased annual losses. In order to get comprehensive insurance reform on the table, Floridian worked closely with Governor Rick Scott and Florida CFO Jeff Atwater to successfully elevate reform of Florida’s Personal Injury Protection (PIP) insurance crisis to “top priority” for legislative action.
Outcome
During the 2011 session, Floridian was able to help FIC create, draft and pass Senate Bill 408. To date, this reform remains one of the most comprehensive and consequential insurance reforms in state history. In the end, both insurance companies and customers were left better off since the reform strengthened insurer solvency by increasing the minimum surplus requirements for new and current residential property insurers.