SEMINOLE COUNTY. Fla. – According to the Insurance Information Institute, a nonprofit research and education organization helping consumers better understand insurance, 80% of all property claim lawsuits are filed in Florida.

What You Need To Know

  • Florida had 116,000 property claim lawsuits filed in 2021

  • No state in the country had over 900 property claim lawsuits filed in 2021

  • A special session may not help homeowners insurance policies for a few years

The other 49 other states and Washington D.C. combined make up the other 20%. That’s why they say if change doesn’t happen fast, people’s homeowners insurance policies could see another 30-50% increase next year.

Last week Bernadette Hurst’s home saw their 20-year-old metal roof fold over.

With in an hour of their roof now blocking the front door, a roofing company paid them a visit.

“It was very surprising,” Hurst said, holding several roofing companies flyers. “I have no idea how they find out where damage is or where to go, especially in an isolated incident like this.”

In fact, it’s the only home on the entire street to see any damage.

Since the storm hit on Thursday, the homeowner says she has already had seven different roofing companies come to the home unsolicited to try to sell her a new roof.

None of them were called on by Hurst's insurance company.

“I had no idea they would be coming this quickly,” she said. “We didn’t get people with inside restoration coming, it was only the roofers.”

Jamie Hoover, the COO of Blanchard Insurance, said a big problem with some roofing companies is that their bid or filed claim is priced high to incentivize a homeowner to use their business, which is ultimately bad business for insurance companies.

 

“If the insurance company pushes that to court, to a lawsuit, you are looking at a 600% multiple sometimes, once a lawyer gets involved,” Hoover said. “So they are just cutting the check, instead of pushing it to court and going through the legal process.”

The Insurance Information Institute reports that the Florida property insurance market is the most volatile in the U.S. and is in dire need of change.

“It is on a trajectory towards collapse,” said Mark Friedlander, a spokesman for the institute. “Based on the current situation we are seeing with home insurers failing or on the brink of failing or pulling out of the state.”

He blamed the problem on rampant roof replacement schemes and runaway litigation. In 2021, Florida had 116,000 property claim lawsuits filed — no other state had more than 900.

So far, the seven roofers who have seen Hurst have given their opinion on her roof, and none have been contacted by her insurance provider.

“Nobody promised anything,” she said. “They just said they think we would get full replacement value.”

Hurst's roof, which is metal, is also 20 years old.

News 13 reached out to the Central Florida Roofing and Sheet Metal Association for comment on the story, and was told that they have a membership meeting in the next few weeks, and are discussing the issue and potential state’s special session then.

 

In 2017, when Hurricane Irma hit Central Florida, information form Seminole County shows there were 2,463 re-roof permits issued. In 2020, when two storms hit the area, the number was 3,518. Last year, the county reported issuing 4,394 re-roof permits.