Florida insurers have been ordered to pay back nearly $6 million in restitution payments over the past year.
A report issued by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (FLOIR) details that "insurers have returned a total of $5,900,230.98 in restitution to Floridians" from October 2023 to October 2024, when the report was released. FLOIR has the authority to impose penalties, take administrative action, mandate restitution for policyholders, and order corrective measures to address unlawful or harmful business practices.
Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky has ramped up efforts to enforce insurance laws since he took office in March 2023, according to The Tampa Bay Business Journal, launching hundreds of market conduct investigations and financial examinations on insurers serving the Sunshine State, including property and casualty as well as life and health insurers.
According to the latest insurer compliance report issued by FLOIR, in the third quarter of 2024, it issued fines to 20 insurers valuing $68,913.90. Nearly $2.8 million in fines were issued between January and October, an increase from $233,000 during the whole of 2023 according to The Tampa Bay Business Journal.
Some reasons for the fines issued are for failures to file required data on time and violations of the Florida Insurance Code. Newsweek has contacted FLOIR via email outside regular working hours.
According to FLOIR's April 2024 insurance compliance report, the largest individual fine issued so far this year was for Accordia Life and Annuity Company, which received a penalty of $1,542,000 for "failure to plan and execute a suitable conversion plan for Florida life insurance policies novated by Athene to Accordia."
According to a consent order issued by FLOIR, an investigation found that Accordia had over a number of years "violated the Florida Insurance Code on a systemic basis" which was discovered after complaints were made by customers.
Newsweek has contacted Accordia Life and Annuity Company for comment via email outside of regular working hours.
Another large fine of $1 million was issued to Heritage Property & Casualty Insurance Company for a "violation of one or more provisions of the Florida Insurance Code following a Targeted Market Conduct Examination for Hurricane Ian claims-handling operations."
FLOIR said it had identified hundreds of violations of various laws, including a failure to promptly report claims received from policyholders, a failure to pay or deny certain claims within the required 90-day period and an inability to maintain complete records for some claims.
Newsweek has contacted Heritage for comment via email outside of regular working hours.
Ian had made landfall in southwestern Florida at category 4 intensity in September 2022. It was responsible for over 150 direct and indirect deaths and over $112 billion
in damage, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Florida homeowners are grappling with soaring premiums and fewer policy options as the state's insurance sector faces a deepening crisis. Excessive litigation, fraud and the increasing threat of more frequent and severe natural disasters have contributed to rising insurance costs and the withdrawal of several private insurers from the state in recent years.
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