Florida Car Insurance Crisis as Rates Shoot Up 30% in a Year

Florida's car insurance rates climbed by 30 percent in the past year, according to a recent report, calling attention to the depth of the ongoing dual insurance crises unfolding in the Sunshine State.

Floridians have recently been hit by both skyrocketing home and car insurance premiums, which most analysts expect to continue climbing next year. Excess litigation in the state has combined with the increased risk of extreme weather events to bring up the price of coverage for homes, while a growing number of uncovered drivers has caused car insurance premiums to shoot up.

In the summer, Newsweek calculated that car insurance premiums had risen by nearly 25 percent since Republican Ron DeSantis won the state gubernatorial election in 2018.

Now a new report by Kelley Blue Book (KBB), a California-based vehicle valuation and automotive research company, found that rates soared by 30 percent in the past year alone.

The cost of car insurance has increased significantly in the past year across the country. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price index (CPI) reported that premiums jumped by 17.1 percent from 2022 to 2023, driven by rising inflation, supply shortages, an increase in the severity of road accidents, and climate change.

But Florida has seen premiums skyrocketing like nowhere else.

Jana Keely, a 67-year-old Florida resident, was among the many readers who wrote to Newsweek to complain about the rising cost of their home and car insurance.

Keely told Newsweek that she owns a 2019 Kia Optima. "Never ever have I had any tickets nor any accidents," she said. "My Florida license says I'm a safe driver!"

Yet she's been asked to pay increasingly higher—and more unaffordable—car insurance premiums.

"In 2021 I was paying $1,100.00 every six months for car insurance, which included collision," Keely said. "In 2022 it went up to $1,500.00, they say due to Hurricane Ian," she continued.

"As of November 8, 2023, I am to pay $2,123.00 every 6 months for car insurance. That is a total of $4,246.00 per year. My car is only worth $11,000.00."

Kevin Ghiloni, a Merritt Island resident, told Newsweek his "property tax and car insurance rates have gone up precipitously."

He said: "Florida is in the midst of a crisis that our GOP-run government refuses to address or provide any answers or relief."

Newsweek has reached out by email to DeSantis for comment.

According to KBB, State Farm filed for three rate increases this year totaling 30.2 percentage points. Progressive took four increases since July 2022 totaling more than 30 percentage points.

USAA filed for three rate increases ranging from 33.9 percent to 57.3 percent for some policyholders. Liberty Mutual has filed for three increases since June 2022, driving average premiums up a total of 44.3 percentage points.

Newsweek has contacted State Farm, Progressive and Liberty Mutual by email for comment, and USAA by phone outside of working hours.