Florida Citizens Property Insurance Policyholders Face Critical Decision Amidst Mail Delays

Attention to all Citizens Property Insurance policyholders in Florida: Keep an eye on your mailbox, as a crucial decision is heading your way. Roughly 300,000 customers of Citizens Property Insurance, Florida’s state-run insurer of last resort, are set to receive letters this month offering them the option to switch to a private insurance company. However, there’s a catch – if you don’t respond by October 5th, you may be forced into the private insurance route, which could come with significantly higher costs.

The challenge arises because the vendor responsible for printing the letters has been swamped with the sheer volume of mailings. This has led to some policyholders receiving less than the customary 30 days to respond. While the letters are typically dated August 28th, a substantial number of customers didn’t receive them until much later, with some postmarked as late as September 13th.

To address this issue, Citizens has extended the response deadline to October 10th, providing policyholders with a little more time to make their decision. They’ve also communicated the delays to insurance agents to ensure customers are aware of the situation.

The main objective of this initiative is to reduce Citizens’ policy count. Over the years, as other insurance companies have scaled back or exited the Florida market due to various challenges, Citizens has emerged as the largest insurer in the state, covering approximately 1.4 million policies. To ease this burden, state regulators have approved several private companies, such as Slide Insurance, to take on some of Citizens’ policies.

However, the decision to switch should not be taken lightly. As one policyholder, Eunic Epstein-Ortiz, discovered, the offer from Slide Insurance was a substantial 77% higher than staying with Citizens, amounting to $7,484 compared to $4,227. Epstein-Ortiz, a former state Senate candidate, expressed her concerns about the lack of urgency and transparency in the process, questioning the wisdom of offloading 300,000 policyholders to private insurers with little notice.

In the face of these challenges, Florida residents covered by Citizens Property Insurance should carefully consider their options and respond to the letters promptly to make informed decisions about their insurance coverage.