Ron Hurtibise Sun Sentinel
Rate hike proposals averaging nearly 10 percent next year for South Florida customers of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. will be scrutinized in public hearings in Tallahassee on Aug. 18.
State law requires annual hearings by the state Office of Insurance Regulation over rates proposed by Citizens, the state-run “insurer of last resort.”
This year’s hearings begin at 9 a.m. in the Senate Office Building, Room 401, 404 S. Monroe St.
In June, the company said its rate hikes stemmed from increases in non-weather-related water claims and resulting lawsuits. Meanwhile, state insurance regulators said they want to know how Citizens’ loss projections will be affected by limitations on water damage coverage approved by regulators last spring.