Floridian Choice Insurance

04/11/2023

03/29/2023

Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Comprehensive Legal Reforms into Law
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill (HB) 837, Civil Remedies, to decrease frivolous lawsuits and prevent predatory practices of trial attorneys who prey on hardworking Floridians. This bill modifies the bad faith framework, eliminates one way attorney’s fees and fee multipliers and ensures that Floridians can’t be held liable for damages if the person suing is more at fault. Additionally, this bill expands immunity for property owners defending against a criminal who is injured on their property while providing uniform standards for juries in calculating medical damages and reducing the statute of limitations for general negligence cases from four years to two years. The Governor proposed this legislation in February before the start of the 2023 Legislative Session. Read the full press release.

"Professional Insurance Agents of Florida (PIAFL) applauds Governor DeSantis and the legislature's leadership for signing House Bill (HB) 837 into law to help protect consumers from predatory legal behavior. This legislation will unclog the court system and protect the rights of Floridians that suffer a loss." -PIA of Florida President Lori Augustyniak.

05/20/2021

https://www.noaa.gov/media-release/noaa-predicts-another-active-atlantic-hurricane-season

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08/21/2020

An H03 Policy could have protected this family. At least pay to rebuild the home and get them back to the same condition they had before this tragic incident.

There is speculation from sources that the home valued close to or over $1,000,000 was uninsured for years as it was paid for. This is a reminder to all of those people that have the train of though that when a home is paid off then you no longer have to have insurance is completely wrong and will likely put your entire life style , savings and your family at risk.

Take this example for instance the home will likely be a total loss and it will likely cost them close to 1 million to demo and rebuilt if not more in today's construction market.

If you take 1 million dollars and divide it by say $8,000 an average premium for this home it would take them 125 years of paying insurance to pay the 1 million so in the short span of real life expectancy of the homeowners their insurance expense more than was worth the investment.

My recommendation when I see cases like this is train your mind to think of insurance in two ways.

1. Think of Insurance as if it was a transfer of risk to someone else (the insurance company) because you don't have the time, the will or the money to dedicate towards handling the repair or rebuild of your home. You have better things to do. and You have better things to put your money on.

2. Insurance is not a one day feel good decision, lets go and buy a policy for whatever reason. Rather insurance is a personal decision you make to protect yourself and your family from an uncertain fate you have no control. It is doing something for the long haul. Meaning if you really want to protect yourself from the unknown then you always have to be insured and try to be insured to the highest limits that you can afford so that if you ever have a loss you don't regret not having more insurance available knowing you had the money to pay for it.

In life staying healthy, alive and surrounded by the people you love is the most amazing thing in the world but never loose track of how unprecedented events like this can change your life in a matter of seconds. How ready you are to face them depends entirely on you.

If you need professional and highly practical advise please contact me directly as I have plenty of experience and would love to learn more about you and your family's needs.

Fernando Perez
Agency Principal
Floridian Choice Insurance Group
305-857-9880
www.floridianchoice.com

A lightning strike sparked a house fire Thursday afternoon in southwest Miami-Dade, causing the roof to collapse and destroying what was considered home to a family for 28 years.

08/21/2020

07/31/2020

KEY MESSAGES FOR HURRICANE ISAIAS

07/06/2020

http://reopening.dadeschools.net/

Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) is committed to making the soundest decisions regarding our reopening, and we strongly believe in making those decisions based on science. Our approach is comprehensive in nature and it is informed by what we see happening internationally as well as by natio...

05/21/2020

INSURANCE SURPLUS LINES MARKET IS SAID TO TIGHTEN UP IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF MONTHS.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Reports Big First-Quarter Loss After $54.5 Billion Hit to Its investments.

Carriers are finding that their rates are deteriorating while the increase in claims along with unfavorable Florida Laws in particular in the areas of assignment of benefits, assault and battery have increased and made it more difficult for the carrier to offer better terms and pricing.

Also the frequency and concentration of claims have increased. We are building taller and closer to the coast. Environmental events are becoming more frequent and loss concentration has really picked up along coastal areas.

Some carriers loose faith in the market and their ability to be profitable in the South Florida Market. Lloyds of london holds about 23% market share and they have seen over the past couple of years reduced earnings to the point that they are pulling back. Back in 2018 Lloyds of London closed poor perming groups down and reduced capacity and firmed up terms. They are planning to do the same in 2020. It is expected that some of this business should flow over to other domestic carriers but it is also expected that insured will still feel the effect of these disruptions.

If your home Coverage A is 300,000 or less it will be tougher to find coverage at a reasonable price in the E & S Market. The same is happening to homes with Coverage A at or above $1,000,000

Your insurance agent is your partner through this trying times. Hard Markets are much shorter than Soft Markets so reach out to us in order to best advise you on how to secure the best terms and pricing for your personal or commercial policies.

Fernando Perez

Summary Article from Attendance to the Independent Insurance Agents of Broward County (IIABC) State of the E&S Market via Zoom.

05/16/2020

Prepare for Hurricane Season! Starts June 1st

https://www.ready.gov/hurricanes

Hurricanes are dangerous and can cause major damage because of storm surge, wind damage, and flooding. They can happen along any U.S. coast or in any territory in the Atlantic or Pacific oceans. Storm surge is historically the leading cause of hurricane-related deaths in the United States.

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04/09/2020

PROGRESSIVE RETURNING 1 BILLION IN PREMIUM TO CUSTOMERS

Today we announced that we’re providing credits of approximately $1 billion in premium to Progressive personal auto customers as a result of fewer claims that come with less frequent driving.

Subject to approval by state regulators, Progressive personal auto customers who have a policy in force as of April 30 will be credited 20% of their April premiums in May and personal auto customers with a policy in force as of May 31 will be credited 20% of their May premiums in June. We estimate that the sum of these two credits will total approximately $1 billion. We may offer additional credits in the upcoming months.

Customers will not need to take any actions to receive the benefits. The credits will be applied automatically to the customer’s policy and those customers who have paid in full will receive a payment of the credited amounts. Please be assured that this action will not affect commission payments. Customers will see it reflected in their accounts within a few weeks after month end.
If they have a balance on the policy, we’ll apply the credit directly to the remaining balance. And if they’ve already paid in full, we’ll return the money to the payment account we have on file—please make sure your customers’ payment details are up to date.

Progressive CEO Tricia Griffith explained, “We understand how difficult and uncertain people’s lives are right now. While auto insurance might not be the most pressing topic on everyone’s mind, we know that finances could be. For our customers who have trusted us to be there in their times of need, we’re fulfilling that promise. We want them to know how much we care. Always guided by our core values, doing the right thing is vitally important to us. We know that by sticking together and taking care of one another during these difficult times, we’ll come through this stronger. We want our current customers to remain our future customers.”

We’ll continue to monitor the effects of the coronavirus situation and share updates as needed as we look for additional ways to help agents, customers, and our communities move forward. In fact, we’re finalizing plans on a number of initiatives designed to help you, our agent partners, during this time—look for additional information next week.

Floridian Choice Insurance
Always on your side.

04/02/2020

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”)

We suggest that you take advantage of the various legislation approved by the federal government including enhanced unemployment benefits, forgivable SBA loans, and forbearance on mortgages.

The CARES Act, among other things, provides the following relief:

Foreclosure Moratorium – Single Family Home or Condo ( Section 4022)

During the Covered Period, a borrower with a Federally Backed mortgage experiencing a financial hardship during the COVID-19 emergency may submit a request to his/her/its servicer for a forbearance up to 180 days with a further forbearance of an additional 180 days.

During the period of forbearance, no fees penalties or interest beyond the amount scheduled or calculated as if the borrower made all payments timely are permitted.

Except for vacant or abandoned property, a servicer of a Federally backed mortgage may not initiate any judicial or non-judicial foreclosure process for not less than 60 days from March 18, 2020.