WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — I ran into Nanci Hunt as she was getting ready to go vote Tuesday in the primary election for many state and local candidates.
"I haven't heard anybody say it," she said when I asked her about homeowners insurance.
"I've heard everybody talking about making marijuana legal, which is fine with me, but I have not heard a single word about homeowners insurance."
Often when I ask state lawmakers, they tell me insurance is the number one issue among their constituents. But solving the issues of insurance that have plagued homeowners seems not to be part of the larger discussion when it comes to most candidates this season.
"The candidates are in a place where many don't understand how the property insurance market works," said former state senator Jeff Brandes of the Florida Policy Project. "Even many members who have served a long time could not explain how the property insurance system of Florida works."
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9 new insurers for Florida. We ask, when will relief arrive?
To be fair, insurance is very complicated, as I have found out during my reporting on the Coverage Collapse in Florida.
And solutions don't seem to come easily.
Lawmakers, especially Republicans in power, seem confident the litigation reforms are bringing in new companies, which they hope brings more competition.
One radical idea earlier this year involved turning Citizens Insurance into a wide wind mitigation insurer for all Floridians, but it was met with skeptical reactions.
And Brandes says he's not sure how a new crop of lawmakers will view the insurance crisis.
"I'm not sure they're going to spend a lot of time on property insurance this year," he said.
Matt Sczesny is determined every day to help you find solutions in Florida's coverage collapse. If you have a question or comment on homeowners insurance, you can reach out to him any time.
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