Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is taking a victory lap, declaring success in stabilizing the state’s troubled property insurance market.
During a February 5 press conference at Florida International University in Miami, DeSantis highlighted a 5.6% average decrease in premium rates for hundreds of thousands of households insured through Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state’s insurer of last resort. After years of substantial increases, approximately 20% of Citizens policyholders statewide are seeing their rates decline.
State regulators confirmed on February 6 that these rates for 2025 mark the first significant decrease in Citizens’ rates in 15 years. Of course, the drop is still just a fraction of the increases Florida homeowners have experienced over the past three years.
Beyond the rate decrease, DeSantis pointed to other positive signs, including, but not limited to, the following:
- New companies entering the property insurance market
- A reduction in lawsuits filed against insurance companies.
- Increased insurance coverage among households.
- Stable or decreasing insurance rates for customers with private insurance.
DeSantis stated that insurance companies “are going to pass on to you what the Legislature has done — brought in stability… You’re going to see more people willing to write more policies here and that just means more choices for you.”
The announcement of decreasing rates appeared to catch Citizens officials by surprise, especially considering Citizens had previously requested a 14% average rate increase. The state-backed entity provides coverage to Floridians who cannot obtain policies from private insurance companies. In recent years, Citizens’ rates had increased: an average of 10% in 2022, 10.7% in 2023, and 12.3% in 2024.
DeSantis attributes these positive developments to a series of reforms passed by state lawmakers, beginning in 2019 and culminating in 2022, when the Republican-controlled Legislature altered regulations governing insurance lawsuits. Industry observers agree that the new rules, which ended the practice of including attorney fees in lawsuit settlements, have reduced incentives for attorneys to take these cases, as well as the ability for customers to contest their insurers’ assessments of home damage repairs in court.
“People are now looking at this in Florida and saying that Florida’s market has stabilized,” DeSantis asserted. “Compare California. California insurers are leaving California. They’re fleeing. They don’t want to be there because the government’s policies have been very, very destructive. Who knows what’s going to happen after these fires?”
“I am still awaiting the final order from the Office of Insurance Regulation,” Citizens’ spokesman Michael Peltier wrote in an email at the time.
“As Gov. DeSantis stated, the 2025 rates reflect the many positive developments that have taken place in the Florida property insurance market since our original recommendations were filed,” Peltier wrote in a subsequent email.
Notably, the governor’s announcement indicated some areas would see greater benefits than others. In Miami-Dade County, nearly 75% of Citizens policyholders face a 6.3% drop in rates; in Broward County, 52% of policyholders will see a 5.3% decrease; and nearly 20% of Citizens customers in Palm Beach County will see an average drop of 5.2%.
“I just think the market conditions have improved,” DeSantis stated. “Our view is that especially in southeast Florida, that given that you really haven’t had many storms here … it’s justifiable to say that those rates should go down.”
Florida homeowners pay, on average, the highest property insurance rates in the country, largely because of the state’s vulnerability to catastrophic storms, a high rate of property insurance lawsuits related to settlements, and instability in the catastrophic fund markets that support insurance companies’ risk.
DeSantis highlighted how 11 new companies have begun underwriting property in Florida, mostly to take policyholders from Citizens. He also referenced an S&P Global report showing Florida’s average increase was 1% in the last year, although the data was limited to analyzing rates from each state’s largest 10 insurers.
“The upshot of all this is that this is not something that just happened,” DeSantis said, adding that major car insurance companies are also decreasing rates for Florida drivers. “The Legislature in Florida has done more to address these issues over the last many years than at any time in the history of the state of Florida.”
However, Juan Moya, president of the Florida Association of Public Insurance Adjusters, which helps policyholders who are dissatisfied with their insurance carrier’s proposal for payment when home damage occurs, expressed a differing viewpoint. Moya pointed out that while premiums are rising, insurance coverage for water damage and roof replacement has diminished. He predicted that the trend will persist unless legislative changes are made, as policyholders’ legal options for challenging insurer decisions have been curtailed.
“More insurers are returning to Florida, but that hasn’t yet translated into better outcomes for policyholders,” Moya said. “FAPIA public adjusters continue to help countless Floridians struggling with delayed or denied claims from the 2024 hurricane season — some facing financial ruin, homelessness, or mold-related illnesses.”
DeSantis’s assertions also contradict testimony given at committee hearings on January 16. Lawmakers heard from policyholders frustrated that they had limited options to challenge inadequate estimations of storm damage repair costs, despite promises that insurance premiums would decrease when legislation was passed.
Logan McFaddin, vice president for state government relations at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, echoed DeSantis’s optimistic stance. McFaddin stated, “It’s clear the Governor and the Legislature effectively addressed the root of the state’s insurance crisis, and as we allow their reforms to continue to work, consumers should continue to see the benefit as market conditions further improve.”
The full impact of recent changes still needs to be measured. The hurricane season that ended on December 1, which included Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton, marked the first since the reforms that prompted hundreds of thousands of damage claims. Industry experts believe the full effects of those storms won’t become clear until the catastrophic bond market assesses how well Florida’s market has withstood the outcomes of the season.
DeSantis clarified that he does not plan to undo any recent changes to lawsuit rules in the upcoming legislative session, which commences in March. He specifically rejected a proposal by State Rep. Hillary Cassel, who introduced a bill to make Citizens policies available to all homeowners, regardless of their ability to obtain insurance elsewhere. DeSantis believes this would be too risky for the public.
“What’s not on the table is unwinding any of the things that have allowed us to get to this point where we can actually announce that Citizens is doing a decrease, where we can actually announce that the big companies for auto are decreasing rates, where we can actually announce that S&P Global said that of all 50 states, Florida’s increases in homeowners’ insurance for 2024 was the lowest of all 50 states,” he said.
DeSantis also intends to continue his efforts to increase state funding for programs that improve homes’ resistance to catastrophic winds. Through My Safe Florida Home, the state will match homeowner contributions for storm-proofing, for example, hurricane-impact windows or a new roof. The state will contribute two dollars for every dollar a homeowner puts in, up to $10,000. The governor’s budget includes more than $600 million for My Safe Florida Home, with funds also allocated for improving condominiums, and an additional $109 million for new inspections and grants.
State Rep. Chip LaMarca, who is sponsoring legislation on the program for the third time, stated it has already proven effective, reducing the premiums for recipients by an average of $1,100.
“The program creates an opportunity for the average homeowner to harden their home against storms and make their most important investment more resilient,” he said.
