Florida Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky fined eight insurers for a total of more than $2 million for improper claims-handling practices following Hurricanes Ian and Idalia.
The Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) said the penalties totaled $2,075,000 after market conduct examinations found multiple violations. Two additional reviews are pending, which may lead to further fines.
Officials emphasized that fines do not affect policyholder rates, unlike litigation costs that drove up premiums in past years. With the peak of the 2025 hurricane season approaching, Yaworsky said OIR will closely monitor insurer performance.
“As your Chief Financial Officer, I promised to hold insurance companies accountable if they do not uphold the agreements they make with their policyholders,” Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia said. “These fines are proof that we are committed to holding them accountable.”
Yaworsky said the state’s insurance market is stabilizing but insisted companies must meet standards. “It is important that consumers have confidence that they are getting what they pay for,” he said. “We want companies to thrive, but they must also be worthy of doing business in our state.”
OIR said its reviews found companies using unappointed adjusters, failing to acknowledge claims on time, not providing required disclosures, withholding the Homeowners Claims Bill of Rights, and failing to pay interest when owed. In one case, error rates topped 60 percent for Hurricane Ian claims and 80 percent for Hurricane Idalia claims involving missing disclosure statements. Some companies also failed to pay or deny claims within 90 days, as required.
The insurers fined were:
- American Coastal Insurance Company, $400,000
- American Mobile Insurance Exchange, $400,000
- Centauri Specialty Insurance Company, $100,000
- Clear Blue Insurance Company, $400,000
- Monarch National Insurance Company, $325,000
- Sutton National Insurance Company, $50,000
- Tower Hill Prime Insurance Company, $250,000
- TypTap Insurance Company, $150,000
- The office said its Market Conduct Unit finalized examinations of 10 insurers this year, with eight showing misconduct tied to hurricanes Ian and Idalia.
In fiscal 2023-24, OIR secured more than $8 million in consumer restitution and issued more than $2.8 million in fines. For the first quarter of 2025, it reported $660,450 in restitution.
The agency said it will continue to release examination findings as reviews are completed.
