Increases in water-damage claims —primarily in South Florida—will likely reverse years of downsizing by the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance, board members were advised as they approved a hike in the corporation’s operating budget.
Citizens President and CEO Barry Gilway said efforts to shed policies have already slowed and that the number of personal-lines accounts handled by the corporation could grow by about 50,000 in 2017, as private insurers shy away from issuing new policies in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, where water-damage losses have grown most rapidly the past few years.
