Allstate companies ask for homeowners coverage rate hike
Aug 7, 2012
The following article was published in The Florida Current on August 7, 2012:
Allstate companies ask for homeowners coverage rate hike
By Gray Rohrer
Two subsidiaries of Allstate Insurance Co. asked state regulators for a boost in rates, pointing to a depleted surplus in recent years, despite a run of six straight years without a hurricane hitting the state.
Castle Key Indemnity Co. and Castle Key Insurance Co. requested statewide average rate increases of 21.9 percent and 32.4 percent, respectively, for all policy types. Company officials said they had a combined loss in surplus from $206.7 million in 2007 to $117.5 million in 2011.
Rate increases for individual counties, however, would differ. Okeechobee County would be hit hardest under both proposals. For Castle Key Insurance, Okeechobee County would receive a 72.4 percent increase, raising an average premium from $1,281 to $3,138. Under Castle Key Indemnity, the county would see a 47.4 percent increase, raising an average premium to $3,318.
The two companies combined are the third-largest private property insurance company in the state with 252,759 policies as of March 31.
The Office of Insurance Regulation will evaluate the proposals and render a decision in the next few months.
View the original article here: http://www.thefloridacurrent.com/article.cfm?id=28811029