Consumer

New FL Website Won't Cure Insurance Shopper Woes

TALLAHASSEE (CBS4) ― Once you get past property taxes and the price of gasoline, Homeowners insurance may be the biggest problem faced by many Florida residents. Even if a Floridian can afford the bill, it's often hard to find coverage outside of Citizens Insurance, the state's insurer of last resort. Now, the state is offering a way to help out, but does it deliver?

While Florida Governor Charlie Crist hasn't found a way to cut costs beyond a token amount, Wednesday he and Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty launched a website they claim will help match Floridians who need insurance with companies ready to provide it.

The state has actually offered the service for a while, but it drew little attention and a large number of complaints that it wasn't really useful. After one year, the updated website is intended to give homeowners more information and more accuracy.

But just how helpful is it? While you might think the state would allow you to enter specifics about your home and community and get sample rates from insurance companies writing policies in your area, in effect the updated sites gives you two examples. If your home doesn't fit, the site may not be of much help.

The state's two examples are for a home built in 1990 with a value of $150 thousand, and a $300 thousand home built after 2005. Once you select an example, you can click on a county-by-county map of the state and get a list of policies and their costs for each county.

But the seemingly well-intentioned idea may give more frustration than help. Since a large part of your insurance cost, and insurability, depends on age and value the inability to change the age of a home or it's value makes the numbers without much value to someone who had a $200 thousand built in 1965.

The site does not allow you to change the parameters of the example.

In addition, the insurance companies which are listed may frustrate insurance shoppers.

McCarty, in announcing the revised website, said "We have licensed 25 new homeowners insurers since January 2006, and they are hungry for business."

However, in Miami-Dade County, both State Farm and Allstate Floridian are listed as being in the insurance market, but both have stated they are not writing new policies in this part of the state, even though they are technically available to do so.

If you're not actually shopping for insurance, it is interesting to use the tool to compare a company's rates in each county, or a county's rates for all companies.

The site does link to other websites which offer ways to protect your home and lower insurance costs, but if you're losing your current insurance and have to shop around, the state's site will likely not keep you from having to phone insurance agents and do the legwork yourself.

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