Citizens Property Insurance proposes price cuts

Some customers have long complained that they think the state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp. charges too much. Now, for the first time in years, the insurer is cutting rates.

The property insurer — Florida’s largest – is proposing a plan to reduce the cost of standard homeowners policies by 6.3 percent statewide and 7 percent in Palm Beach. However, that doesn’t mean everyone will see lower bills, with the overall reduction across all residential and commercial policies being a mere 1 percent.

For instance, wind-only customers in Palm Beach County would see a 5.7 percent increase, and condo residents in the county would see a 7.4 percent increase for wind-only coverage, according to the Palm Beach Post.

“Citizens has always been committed to charging only what is needed to establish actuarially sound rates and our proposed 2015 rates reflect that continued commitment,” said Chris Gardner, chairman of Citizens’ Board of Governors. “We’ve done nothing more than rely upon the same data we use every year to determine rates and this year that data indicates a decrease is in order for most of our policyholders.” [PBP] – Christopher Cameron