In the News
Florida Democrats Slam Failed Republican Insurance Reforms Impacting Tens of Thousands of Floridians
Today, the Florida Democratic Party held a press conference alongside House Democratic Caucus members in response to Farmers Insurance Group leaving the State of Florida.
Yesterday, Farmers Insurance Group announced that it would no longer write new policies or renew existing homeowner, auto and umbrella policies, affecting about 100,000 policies.
This is only the most recent insurance provider to abandon Florida — at least 10 other companies have recently dropped coverage.
Despite two Special Sessions over the last 12 months, Republican leadership has failed to deliver effective insurance reforms. It’s clear Republican leadership in the Florida Legislature is out of its depth.
In a press conference on Wednesday, FDP Chair Nikki Fried and Democratic leaders said:
Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried: “People can’t afford to live here. If they are even able to find property insurance, the premiums are through the roof. You’re seeing in some areas, 40%, 50%, 60% increases in their premiums and that is completely unacceptable.”
Florida House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell: “Trickle-down economics doesn’t work, and neither does trickle-down insurance relief. The Republicans have led us to play whack-a-mole….when it comes to property insurance.”
State Representative Anna Eskamani: “We have Republican voters that are frustrated by the lack of leadership from their own party. Maybe instead of banning books, they should be focused on these types of problems. I assume one of the books they banned is “How To Run a Competent Government.”
State Representative Hillary Cassel: “We are sitting on billions of dollars in surplus that’s supposed to be available for a rainy day. Ladies and gentlemen, we’re in the middle of a storm — we’re no longer waiting on a rainy day. This is a flood like we’ve never seen.”
A full recording of the press conference is available online.
