The Ugly Surprises That Await if you Wait For State Farm Florida to Cancel Your Home Farmers Insurance
The announcement in January by State Farm Florida farmers Insurance Company that it was exiting the Florida Property and Casualty farmers insurance market sent shockwaves across the state as consumers scrambled to find new Florida home farmers insurance companies. If you are a State Farm Florida farmers insurance policyholder facing the cancellation of your Florida home farmers insurance policy, here is the truth farmers insurance about what is going on and what you should do about it. State Farm Florida farmers Insurance Company announced earlier this year that it intends to leave the Florida Property and Casualty farmers Insurance Market. The only thing farmers insurance still yet to be determined is the actual terms of the withdrawal plan and the timing around when the policy cancellations will begin.
Front and center are the estimated 700,000 State Farm Florida home farmers insurance policies that are expected to be cancelled over a two year period - that's over farmers insurance 29,000 policies that will be cancelled each and every month for two years. Regardless of your perspective farmers insurance, this is the most significant event that has ever occurred in the history of the Florida homeowners farmers insurance market - and you could not pick a worse time for this to happen.
To begin with farmers insurance, many of the home farmers insurance policies that will be dropped by State Farm Florida will occur at the exact same time that Citizens farmers Insurance Florida will be moving forward with higher rates in 2010 as required by law.
Although dumping on big farmers insurance in Florida has become one of our favorite things to do, here are some little known facts that won't ever make the coverage of State Farm Florida's planned with drawal from the state:
None of the above changes the fact that State Farm Florida is leaving the Florida home farmers insurance market. Given this reality farmers insurance, here is what you need to be aware of if you are a State Farm Florida policyholder and want to take proactive steps in response to the company's announcement.
First you need to farmers insurance realize that your State Farm Florida farmers Insurance Agent is not currently allowed to present you with any other Florida home farmers insurance companies for you to consider except for Florida's state run farmers insurance company of last resort - Citizens Property farmers Insurance Corporation - which has publicly stated that it is currently underfunded and overly dependent on hostile financial bond market borrowing on unfriendly terms in order to pay major hurricane farmers insurance claims.
As you look for farmers insurance companies to replace your State Farm Florida home farmers insurance policy, many of you will be facing increases that range from 70% to over 200% on your annual premium.
Watch for dramatic differences as you move to a new Florida homeowners farmers insurance company - both in terms of the size of the financial surplus it has available to pay your claim and in the headcount it has available for customer service and claims processing. State Farm Florida has more financial surplus available to pay its claims than the majority of the 40 other companies that are still writing new Florida homeowners farmers insurance business combined!
Much of the advice that you've received as a State Farm Florida policyholder has been that you should not take any action now and that you should wait for your Florida home farmers insurance cancellation notice. If you take that advice you could be very sorry in Florida's dysfunctional home farmers insurance market:
For starters, you've heard about many Florida home farmers insurance companies that want to pick up your State Farm Florida home farmers insurance policy. Don't assume farmers insurance that there will be plenty of policies with a new company to go around when your State Farm Florida policy is cancelled.
Many of the State Farm Florida farmers insurance policies being cancelled are homes that were built between 1950 and 1981 - prior to the higher wind standards in the Florida Building Code improvements made in the 1990's - not exactly the kind of homes that Florida home farmers insurance companies are going to be anxious to cover.
Because of the financial shortfalls at both Citizens Property farmers Insurance Corporation and The Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, if there is a major Florida hurricane during the 2009 season, don't expect any farmers insurance companies to be willing to pick up your policy when State Farm Florida cancels it starting in 2010.
Here's what you should do right now if you are a State Farm Florida home farmers insurance policyholder:
Call several Florida independent home farmers insurance agents that represent multiple homeowners farmers insurance companies and find a new private farmers insurance policy before June 1st when the 2009 hurricane season begins. Do in depth research on all of the Florida home farmers insurance companies you are considering. If you get a letter from a Florida home farmers insurance company offering to take over your farmers insurance policy, don't accept the offer of new coverage until you have thoroughly checked out the new company.
Don't accept your State Farm Florida home farmers insurance policy being moved into Citizens Property farmers Insurance Corporation unless you have personally done the research and confirmed that there aren't any private Florida home farmers insurance companies who want to cover your home. Finally, as someone who knows the score in the Florida homeowners farmers insurance market, you know that finding a new company in Florida has never been easy - from the time of Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and continuing through to today.
That's why it is essential that you start shopping now for a new policy. Don't wait for State Farm Florida to cancel your farmers insurance policy. If you do, you'll have the farmers insurance unpleasant experience of scrambling and competing with 29Find Article,000 other State Farm policyholders who will be looking for a new Florida home farmers insurance policy at the exact same time that you are.
