Plus, more new property insurance companies join the Florida market
A roofing company and its owner are in trouble with Florida’s Attorney General for allegedly violating a series of recent legislatively-created insurance consumer protection reforms; a lawyer in the know outlines how to avoid rip-offs, litigation and construction delays in hurricane rebuilding; Florida welcomes another two new property insurance companies; the health of the reinsurance market at mid-year; plus, ‘open carry’ of guns is now the law of the land in Florida. It’s all in this week’s Property Insurance News.
Roofing Rip-off Lawsuit: The Florida Attorney General’s Office has filed a lawsuit and petition for injunction & restitution against Jacksonville-based Florida Roof Specialists and its President Jeremey Rogero, the result of a year-long investigation involving 131 consumer complaints. The lawsuit alleges a “scheme” by the company involving “frivolous” liens and lawsuits against customers around the Tampa Bay area. It began when sales reps, often after storms “falsely told many consumers that if they retain defendant’s services, the roofing company would personally handle their roofing claims with their respective insurance companies and that their only out of pocket cost would be their insurance deductible.” Consumers were “misled” there wouldn’t be further charges. But after the roofs were installed, consumers received bills, some in excess of what their insurance companies paid for the roofs. Those who didn’t pay were subject to liens and foreclosure lawsuits by the company that the AG’s suit described as “baseless” and lacking prices for roofing services. The lawsuit also alleges invalid Assignments of Benefits (AOB) agreements both before and after the Florida Legislature outlawed their use, in what the AG described as “deceptive, unfair, and unconscionable.”
WFLA-TV in Tampa helped bring the problem to light with multiple stories, including a recent one where the homeowner faces foreclosure after getting a $26,000 supplemental bill after insurance paid $24,000 for a new roof. One story commenter wrote “If you file more than 100 foreclosure actions, you are not in the roofing business, you are in the home acquisition business.” The case serves as a timely reminder to “Talk to your insurance company first.”
Attorney Stephen Schahrer
Avoiding Construction Problems: When a hurricane tears through a community, the damage left behind can feel overwhelming. For property owners, the priority is to get repairs done quickly so that life and business can return to normal. But too often, homeowners and business owners face months of waiting as construction drags on—or worse, never gets completed at all. This raises a pressing question: If repairs are delayed after a hurricane, do property owners have legal recourse against the contractor or construction company? Attorney Stephen Schahrer, a Shareholder in the Boatman Ricci law firm of Naples, which has seen more than its share of devastating hurricanes, has written a comprehensive yet straightforward article, including practical advice, that you can read here.
More New Insurance Companies: The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) announced last week it has authorized two new additional property and casualty insurance companies. Stand Insurance Exchange and Praxis Reciprocal Exchange mark the 16th and 17th insurers to enter the market since Florida’s legislative reforms. The new companies, listed below in order of their Certificate of Authority date, bring in more than $574 million in policyholder surplus per OIR to support additional growth in the Florida’s property market.
Tower Hill Insurance Exchange – 12/21/2021
Mainsail Insurance – 08/10/2023
Orion180 Insurance – 08/21/2023
Orion180 Select Insurance – 08/21/2023
Orange Insurance Exchange – 10/06/2023
Condo Owners Reciprocal Exchange – 11/30/2023
Patriot Select Insurance – 12/27/2023
Manatee Insurance Exchange – 02/02/2024
Ovation Home Insurance Exchange – 04/03/2024
Trusted Resource Underwriters Exchange – 04/15/2024
Trident Reciprocal Exchange – 08/21/2024
Tailrow Insurance Exchange – 11/13/2024
ASl Select Insurance Corp – 12/09/2024
Mangrove Property Insurance – 01/15/2025
Viceroy Preferred Insurance – 08/01/2025
Praxis Reciprocal Exchange – 09/17/2025
Stand Insurance Exchange – 09/15/2025
Mid-year Reinsurance Report: Gallagher Re is out with its twice-annual Reinsurance Market Report, an in-depth analysis on the size and performance of the reinsurance industry. Global reinsurance dedicated capital totaled $805 billion at half-year 2025, an increase of 4.8% versus the restated full year 2024 base. Albeit still at historically strong levels, Gallagher Re’s analysis of a subset of 16 reinsurers shows the reported and underlying combined ratios increased to 87.5% (vs. 2024 HY: 84.6%) and 94.7% (vs. 2024 HY: 94.2%) respectively. Reported Return on Equity (ROE) remained strong at 17.7%, yet lower than 19.6% at 2024 HY. The underlying ROE suffered (12.6% vs 15.2% at 2024 HY) from various (partly one-off) factors not related to P&C reinsurance underwriting or investment income. Reinsurers are well positioned to maintain strong profitability in 2025. Assuming a ‘normal’ level of natural catastrophe losses, expectations are for an underlying ROE of 13-14% and a headline ROE of approximately 17-18%1 for the full year, both significantly above the industry’s cost of capital. As a result, traditional reinsurance capital is on track to increase by roughly 8% in 2025. Josh Knapp, Gallagher Re’s Executive Vice President, recently sat down with Reinsurance News for an interesting discussion on aggregate reinsurance making a comeback.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmaier
Open Carry: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier last week said Floridians ability to openly carry guns is “the law of the state,” and issued guidance to prosecutors and law enforcement. It follows a decision by a panel of the First District Court of Appeal that ruled a longstanding ban was unconstitutional. Uthmeier said “some cleanup” in laws might be needed by the Florida Legislature as there are some places where guns still cannot be carried.
LMA Newsletter of 9-22-25
