Mar 16, 2007 8:01 pm US/Eastern
Homeowner's Yet To See Proposed Insurance Cuts
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TALLAHASSEE (CBS4) ―
If you own a home in Florida, you know insurance is ultra-expensive and "talk is cheap", so when the governor signed a law demanding rate reductions, the savings seemed to be guaranteed, but the truth is some companies are offering rate cuts as low as *one* percent.
According to the latest numbers from Florida's office of insurance regulation, if your home is insured by Affilated FM Insurance, your new rates could save you less than 1% over last years' bill.
If you've got a good neighbor with Florida's biggest private insurer, State Farm, they could see lower bills of about 7%.
Both proposals are way under the projected 24% rate cuts predicted several weeks ago by state regulators.
Governor Charlie Crist told CBS-4's Al Sunshine by telephone from Tampa on Friday that he wants an immediate investigation why deeper savings are not being passed along to Florida Consumers, like Miami's Marilynn Chirole.
The Miami mother of five has not only "not" seen lower insurance bills, but she's facing having her homeowner's policy climb another $2000 dollars.
One state lawmaker says these latest rate plans are just the opening volley of what could be a long battle between the state's office of insurance regulation demanding rate cuts and the insurance industry fighting to maintain its profitability.
The industries' latest rate plans are now under review by the office of insurance regulation in Tallahassee.
Will the agency open a special investigation, as requested by the governor or reject the new rates and demand bigger savings like so many local homeowners are now demanding?
Despite repeated calls to Florida's' Office of Insurance Regulation by CBS-4's Al Sunshine on Friday, nobody from the agency called him back with any answers.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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