Every year, Floridians see their health, car, homeowner’s, and just about any other insurance policy premiums balloon to unaffordable levels.
It’s easy to blame the insurance companies because after all, they are the one’s setting the rate increases, right?
Insurance companies don’t increase their premiums just because they can or want to. There is a regulatory process involved where they have to justify any increases.
Unfortunately, there is a huge underlying cost-intensive variable that pressures underwriters to request an increase in their premiums, and that is the frivolous lawsuits filed by lawyers just looking to line their pockets with litigation dollars.
These lawsuits filed by attorneys, who have long abused the system, all-but force insurance companies to pass on litigation costs to the consumer, leaving Floridians to pay some of the highest automobile rates in the nation.
Attorneys are attorneys and bill for their services, but if legislation was in place to protect the consumer from those predatory litigation attorneys, insurance premiums wouldn’t be so astronomically high.
In the recent past, the Florida Legislature has failed to address the issue of high insurance rates, but according to well-placed sources in Tallahassee, lawsuit reform will be one of the focal points in the 2019 legislative session.
Attorneys and consultants from both sides are digging in for what could be an epic fight over insurance rates and lawsuit abuse. Considering that incoming Governor Ron DeSantis has already signaled that his Supreme Court picks could influence lawsuit reform, it’s fair to assume that DeSantis will also push for legislative solutions to deal with the insurance premium fiasco.
