May 23, 2022, WMFE-FM, Orlando – Lisa Miller of Lisa Miller & Associates says widespread fraud including roofing scams and the resulting litigation are to blame. She says these lawsuits drive up the cost of insurance premiums for everyone. “The insurance commissioner testified that Florida has only 8 percent of all property insurance claims in the country, yet Florida has almost 80 percent of all the litigation in the entire country.” (Original story location: https://www.wmfe.org/nothing-in-life-is-free-special-session-will-address-how-roofing-scams-are-driving-up-florida-property-insurance-rates/199081)
ORLANDO, Fla. – A special legislative session to address Florida’s property insurance crisis begins Monday in Tallahassee.
Florida homeowners have seen their property insurance double or even triple since the start of the pandemic.
Lisa Miller of Lisa Miller & Associates says widespread fraud including roofing scams and the resulting litigation are to blame. She says these lawsuits drive up the cost of insurance premiums for everyone.
That’s why she hopes legislators will address these scams first and foremost when they meet in the special session this week.
“The insurance commissioner testified that Florida has only 8 percent of all property insurance claims in the country, yet Florida has almost 80 percent of all the litigation in the entire country.”
And she says she’d start by making it harder for roofers and contractors to reap the benefits of these scams in the Sunshine State.
“I think we have to take away the incentive for those who are gaming the system from gaming the system. And all this hustle and insanity has increased our litigation in our state to a point that is unlike any other state.”
According to Bankrate, the average cost of home insurance in Florida this year is around $1,648 dollars well above the national average of $1,383 dollars.
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