ORLANDO, FLA.--Florida's chief financial officer said she will soon be scrutinizing insurers for their failure to cut property insurance rates in the wake of legislative changes.

"I'll be taking a very close look at this in the coming weeks," promised Alex Sink, who oversees the Department of Financial Services, speaking at the annual Workers' Compensation Educational Conference here, sponsored in part by the National Underwriter Company.

She said that Florida legislative changes have led to a stronger market and greater protection for workers.

For property insurers, Ms. Sink noted that in January the state legislature had expanded the capacity of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund to offer cheap reinsurance to primary insurers. That move, she said, put Floridians "on the hook for $28 billion to pay for storm losses."

This was done, she said, with the idea that property insurance rates would drop by as much as 20 percent.

The problem, however, is that Florida is "not seeing the savings we had anticipated." She explained that Florida is now trying to determine why insurers are not delivering reductions that were promised, which is something she will be examining.

Ms. Sink noted that Florida's workers' comp reform efforts have led to a "dramatic increase in rate reduction," equal to decreases of more than 40 percent.

The availability of workers' comp insurance was increased and more accountability was brought into the system, she said. Prior to this reform, "Florida was consistently ranked in the top-five states with the highest workers' comp rates," she said. "We don't know what our ranking for this year will be yet, but it's safe to say that Florida no longer has the highest rate in the Southeastern U.S."

Reform in Florida has meant significant decreases in claims cost and frequency of injuries. "This is a true victory for providers, businesses and injured workers," she said. "Despite the rate decreases, Florida may actually experience overall premium growth."

This, she said, can be attributed to the state's strong economy with increased employment, and even stronger efforts to get employers to comply.

She added that it's "obvious that many more employers are paying into the system and that more workers have the protection they deserve."

Another occurrence, she said, is an improvement in the state's combined ratio. From 2001-2005 the combined ratio in Florida improved from as high as 108 percent to 91 percent. As a result, more carriers are writing workers' comp in Florida.

Prior to reform, Ms. Sink said Florida's total injury rate was four-to-five times higher than the national average. Permanent total injuries, she noted, are the mostly costly type of workers' comp injuries.

After amending the standards for an injured worker to achieve permanent total status, she said Florida's permanent total injury rate has decreased and impairment benefits increased for the more seriously injured workers--those that have not reached permanent total status.

Additionally, she said carriers that don't meet the performance standards or properly handle claims are subject to stiffer penalties.

Performance is now monitored by a supervised performance system--an interactive Web-based system--that allows carriers to access their claims handling performance information and respond in a timely manner.

"Our division is also conducting audits comparing claims handling practices to uncover improper patterns or practices," she said. "As a result, fewer petitions for benefits are being filed with the office of justice for compensation claims."

She told her audience that more information on these issues is available on her Web site, myfloridacfo.com.

Special Reports /

Fla. CFO Vows To Eyeball Property Rates

Related Stories

Recommended For You