Hurricane Ian and the future of property insurance

Rampant roofing scams have caused a property-insurance crisis in Florida. The industry’s net losses in the state were more than $1B in 2021.

Why should we care?
Climate change, and the extreme weather events that come with it, are slated to bring an uptick in claims filed by policyholders dealing with property damage—both real and imagined. But, since 2021, eight Florida-based insurance companies have gone out of business, and those that have survived have increased their rates between 15% and 96%, and, at times, canceling homeowners’ policies. Florida hasn’t dealt with a major hurricane since 2018, but Hurricane Ian’s current path places it directly on a collision course with Tampa—along with 10-foot storm surges. Combined with the predominance of roofing scams, in which contractors file false damage claims with property-insurance carriers and settle the claims out of court, these recent developments may force the federal government to bail out Florida’s property-insurance industry as well as their policyholders, and potentially draft legislation to prevent future collapses. “Florida is the most volatile property insurance market in the country and it is on the verge of collapse,” said Mark Friedlander, a spokesperson for the Insurance Information Institute. The convergence of these frightening factors suggests that property-insurance carriers will double down on risk mitigation through climate modeling, and continue pitching for more stringent regulation that can help keep their business afloat.