Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has shed nearly 90,000 policies in Tampa Bay since this time last year, thrusting homeowners into the private sector — where some may end up paying more.
Why it matters: Hurricanes and aggressive litigation caused the state-run insurer to balloon in recent years, leaving it overexposed.
- Experts had warned that if a hurricane were to slam into Tampa Bay or Miami, it could wipe out Citizens’ claims-paying funds and trigger a “hurricane tax” on all insured homes, cars and boats.
By the numbers: Tampa Bay had 211,964 policies with Citizens as of May 31, the latest available data. That’s down 30% from 299,882 a year ago.
- Hillsborough County led the drop with a 65% decline, falling from 61,427 policies to 37,252.
- Hernando County followed with a 55% drop, while Pinellas still held the most Citizens policies in the region, even after a 34% decrease.
Between the lines: Tim Cerio, CEO of Citizens, credited the success of its de-population program to “improving” market conditions and to the legislative reforms undertaken in 2022.
Reality check: Florida homeowners still face some of the highest insurance premiums in the nation. As a result, 1 in 5 homeowners in the state have opted to forgo coverage altogether…