CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. — Despite state leaders' assurances that homeowners' insurance rates are declining, many Florida residents continue to face rising premiums, leaving them frustrated and considering relocation.
WPTV has been tracking Florida's insurance market for more than a year, and while some homeowners are seeing relief, others are still waiting for the promised savings to materialize.
WATCH BELOW: Insurance relief eludes many Florida homeowners
Lisa Riggi, a Coral Springs homeowner, reached out to WPTV through Facebook after we posted a story about improving insurance conditions in Florida.
However, we spoke to Riggi on Thursday, and her experience tells a different story.
"The year prior, it went up 30%, and then this year I don't know what the percentage is, but it went up another $170," Riggi said.
The premium continues to rise on the home she's owned for 26 years, despite industry claims of rate reductions.
Stacey Giulianti, an executive from Windward Risk Managers in Boca Raton, oversees three insurance companies, including Edison, which covers Riggi's home. He said his companies have implemented rate decreases.
"For our three companies, Florida Peninsula, Edison and Ovation over the last several years, we do a rate filing every six months, so either we've had a zero percent raise or a rate decrease; we have not had a rate increase over that time," Giulianti told WPTV during a recent interview at the company's headquarters in Boca Raton.
Insurance industry insiders and state leaders in Tallahassee insist the litigation reforms from three years ago have finally resulted in stability for insurers and policyholders.
Companies are now either holding the line on rates or filing for rate reductions as lawsuits have significantly dropped.
Florida Peninsula was recently singled out by Gov. Ron DeSantis for a statewide average reduction of 8.2%.
However, rates are not the same as premiums, and they don't necessarily go down together.
"Sometimes you have a $300,000 house, and because of inflation your house is now worth $350,000, and you're asking your insurance company to cover an extra $50,000 in coverage, you have to charge for that," Giulianti says.
"The good news we have been trying to spread is the reforms have worked," Michael Yaworsky, Florida's insurance commissioner, told WPTV at the State Capitol.
Yaworsky said the addition of 17 new companies in the state is adding to competition.
"We are the strongest from a solvency-capitalization perspective that we've been in well over a decade at this point," Yaworsky said.
Yet, for homeowners like Riggi, the price of premiums is leading her to rethink living in Florida.
"We're looking at moving," she said. "We're not sure if we will stay in state or out of state, but we're looking at moving; it's not affordable for us to stay here anymore."
A quiet hurricane season in 2025 could bring additional benefits in 2026, a year when state leaders and insurance executives insist conditions are improving.
Portions of this story were reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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.
