Inside Verisk’s race to respond to new Florida insurance legislation

September 13, 2023 / 2 min read

As extreme weather events become more common, states like Florida have been facing a uniquely difficult challenge with some contractors exploiting the assignment of benefits (AOB) insurance practice. But thanks to sweeping new legislation, that practice may be coming to an end.

florida-legislation

For over 15 years, this practice has been the bane of the Florida insurance market—until recent legislation was enacted.

An AOB allows policyholders to give third parties, like roofing contractors and water mitigation companies, the ability to file a claim, make repair decisions, and collect insurance payments from insurance companies on their behalf. But in the Florida market, some contractors inflated the cost of the claims, which then increased claim severity, which in turn affected premiums, ultimately increasing premiums for many Florida policyholders.

In the year 2000, there were approximately 1,300 AOB lawsuits in Florida. By 2018, there were around 135,000 AOB cases.¹ For over 15 years, this practice has been the bane of the Florida insurance market—until recent legislation was enacted, prohibiting the practice.²

This new law prohibits post-loss assignment of benefits, with few exceptions.³ This is expected to have a far-reaching impact on the Florida insurance market, both for national carriers that write in Florida as well as Florida-based insurers.

How Verisk is taking action

When legislation is enacted, an examination of Verisk’s insurance programs starts, to assess for potential impacts. Then the race begins, with the ultimate goal of getting updated material filed and acknowledged and/or approved by the relevant state insurance departments as quickly as possible, and into the hands of Verisk customers. That requires our compliance, government relations, and in-house legal teams to work closely together to assess Verisk’s contract language and related content for compliance with state law and make any changes in response to the new legislation.

When this new law, was passed,⁴ Verisk’s compliance team leapt into action. On January 31, 2023, less than 50 days later, we submitted 10 filings, which revised nine forms, withdrew 10 forms, and withdrew two rules, impacting a total of eight lines of business, to respond to this important change to AOB. Part of this process included amending pending filings for five lines of business as well as submitting new filings in an additional three lines of business. Working closely with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulations (FLOIR), we submitted a subsequent amendment in all eight lines of business prior to our filings being approved, effective October 2023.

Responding quickly to legislation, regulation, and court decisions is the objective of Verisk’s compliance team. We know our customers rely upon us to maintain the integrity of our core insurance programs. Through legislative monitoring and the resultant program updates, Verisk enables our customers to grow their business, with the security that our programs reflect individual state statutes, laws and regulations.

Bethan Moorcraft, "AOB abuse in Florida rises 70% in 15 years," Insurance News, 2019, <https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/us/news/breaking-news/aob-abuse-in-florida-rises-70-in-15-years-163448.aspx >, accessed on July 1, 2023.
2022 Fla. Laws Chs. 2022-271 (former S.B. 2-A)
"Recent Property Insurance Changes," MyFloridaCFO, 2023, <https://www.myfloridacfo.com/division/ica/propertyinsurancechanges >, accessed on July 1, 2023
2022 Fla. Laws Chs. 2022-271 (former S.B. 2-A)