Homeowners Insurance Fix On Agenda
By JULIA FERRANTE - The Tampa Tribune
Published September 22, 2006
NEW PORT RICHEY - A lawyer who helped Monroe County take on Citizens Property
Insurance Corp., the state's insurer of last resort, has told Pasco County
officials he thinks he can help them, too.
Timothy Volpe, of Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes,
Rogerson and Wachs in Jacksonville, has said the key to reducing Pasco's
property insurance rates is sinkhole claims, an issue legislators and the state
Department of Insurance Regulation also are tackling.
"The problem in Pasco County is not wind but
sinkholes," Assistant County Attorney Elizabeth Blair told county commissioners
recently.
Volpe advised Monroe to hire an actuary who
analyzed wind insurance rates in the Florida Keys. The research resulted in the
state ordering Citizens to reduce rates in the southernmost county. Citizens
Property Insurance might challenge the ruling.
Volpe is scheduled to address the county
commission at a meeting set for 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the West Pasco Government
Center, 7530 Little Road.
Monroe's actuary, Allan Schwartz of Freehold,
N.J., and Volpe concluded Citizens' rates were 32 percent too high and that the
insurer overestimated risks for hurricanes and underestimated building codes.
State Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey, and
state Rep. John Legg, R-New Port Richey, backed legislation this year requiring
the state to re-evaluate how companies assess insurance rates, with attention to
sinkholes. The state in response announced insurance companies may charge higher
sinkhole deductibles after Oct. 1 to make premiums more affordable and eliminate
fraudulent claims.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Pasco County Commission meeting
WHEN: 1:30 p.m. Tuesday
WHERE: West Pasco Government Center, 7530
Little Road, New Port Richey
Reporter Julia Ferrante can be reached at
(813) 948-4220 or
jferrante@tampatrib.com. Keyword: Insurance, for more on homeowners
insurance issues.
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