Florida’s reforms to tackle predatory lawsuit abuse is a success story, that’s the takeaway after news outlets across the state reported on rate reductions to consumers’ auto insurance policies – the first time in years, following staggering increases in 2023.
As Gulf Coast News reported:
“Florida drivers may be seeing some relief on their auto insurance bills, as the state reports a significant drop in rates following recent legal reforms aimed at reducing expensive lawsuits. According to Florida Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky, the state’s top five auto insurers, Progressive, GEICO, Allstate, State Farm, and USAA, are cutting rates by an average of 6.5% this year.”
“The rate reductions mark a dramatic turnaround from just two years ago, when auto insurance premiums in Florida spiked more than 30%, driven largely by litigation costs and fraud. Now, state officials say a package of legislative reforms passed in 2022 and 2023 is delivering results.”
“That’s a big change from December 2021, when Citizen’s reported rate hikes were necessary because the 52 private companies that were writing 79% of property insurance policies in the state lost $847 million through the third quarter of 2021. This was largely blamed on the number of lawsuits against insurance companies filed in Florida. Consumer groups, insurance agents and government officials at the time regularly pointed to the fact that Florida accounted for 8% of policies nationwide in 2019, while accounting for 76% of all litigation.”
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulations:
“For 2025, Florida’s top five auto writer insurance groups are indicating an average -6.5% rate change, down from an average +4.3% in 2024 and a staggering average of +31.7% in 2023. The top five auto writer insurance groups amount to 78% of Florida’s auto market. In addition, to optimistic auto rate changes, Florida is reporting a remarkable reduction in the personal auto liability loss ratio, down to a 53.3% on average in 2024—the lowest in the nation. These improvements are largely due to historic legislative reforms championed by Governor Ron DeSantis.”
Elsewhere across the country, auto insurance is contributing to inflation. The Consumer Price Index report released this July also shows that auto insurance continues to contribute to inflation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:
“The index for all items less food and energy rose 2.9 percent over the past 12 months. The shelter index increased 3.8 percent over the last year. Other indexes with notable increases over the last year include medical care (+2.8 percent), motor vehicle insurance (+6.1 percent), household furnishings and operations (+3.3 percent), and recreation (+2.1 percent).”
When states tackle lawsuit abuse reform, costs to consumers drop.