Florida's Largest Insurer Cuts Over 100,000 Policies in One Month

Florida's largest property insurer recently shed more than 100,000 home insurance policies.

Why It Matters

Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, created by the Florida Legislature in 2002, provides insurance to eligible Florida property owners who cannot find insurance coverage in the private market.

Despite being the insurer of last resort in Florida, the number of Citizens policies has ballooned in recent years as private insurers have dropped customers and raised rates following losses due to payouts and litigation. In 2024, regulators in the Sunshine State approved proposals allowing private insurers to take policies from Citizens as part of an insurance depopulation program.

What To Know

Citizens confirmed to Newsweek that it had depopulated 102,083 of its policies to private insurers this month. On January 31, the state insurer held 941,156 active policies.

Spokesperson Michael Peltier told Newsweek, "On February 18, 2025, 102,083 Citizens policies were assumed by private insurance companies participating in the Citizens Depopulation Program after they sought and received approval from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation to do so."

The depopulated policies have been assumed by eight insurance providers, with the largest number of policies—more than 32,000—being moved to Manatee Insurance Exchange.

The last time Citizens undertook such a considerable drop in its active policies was between September and October, when it removed more than 200,000 policies.

This month's depopulation also marked the first time since spring 2022 that Citizens' policy count dropped below 850,000. On March 31, 2022, the company held 817,926 policies, which increased to 851,006 by April 30, 2022.

Florida residents have been grappling with some of the highest home insurance rates in the country. According to Bankrate, the average Sunshine State resident pays $5,488 per year to insure a home worth $300,000—about $3,000 more than the national average of $2,258. Rates can vary considerably depending on location, with residents of West Palm Beach paying an average of $8,240 to insure homes worth $300,000.

What People Are Saying

Citizens said on its website: "Citizens is committed to helping its policyholders find coverage in the private market. As required by Florida law, Citizens' Depopulation Program matches Citizens policyholders with insurance companies interested in removing their policy from Citizens and providing private-market coverage for their policy. All companies assuming policies from Citizens have been approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation."

What Happens Next

Tim Cerio, the president and CEO of Citizens, has said the company expects to end 2025 with slightly fewer than 771,000 active policies, NBC Miami reported. More depopulation is scheduled for March and April.