Senate Bill sb1486c1

    Florida Senate - 2005                           CS for SB 1486

    By the Committee on Banking and Insurance; and Senator Garcia





    597-1677C-05

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to property insurance; amending

  3         s. 627.701, F.S.; providing that the

  4         requirement for a hurricane deductible to apply

  5         on an annual basis applies to personal lines

  6         residential property insurance policies;

  7         requiring insurers that provide commercial

  8         residential property insurance to offer

  9         alternative hurricane deductibles that apply on

10         an annual basis or to each hurricane; providing

11         an effective date.

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13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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15         Section 1.  Subsection (5) of section 627.701, Florida

16  Statutes, as amended by section 4 of chapter 2004-480, Laws of

17  Florida, is amended to read:

18         627.701  Liability of Insureds; coinsurance;

19  deductibles.--

20         (5)(a)  The hurricane deductible of any personal lines

21  residential property insurance policy issued or renewed on or

22  after May 1, 2005, shall be applied as follows:

23         1.(a)  The hurricane deductible shall apply on an

24  annual basis to all covered hurricane losses that occur during

25  the calendar year for losses that are covered under one or

26  more policies issued by the same insurer or an insurer in the

27  same insurer group.

28         2.(b)  If a hurricane deductible applies separately to

29  each of one or more structures insured under a single policy,

30  the requirements of this paragraph subsection apply with

31  respect to the deductible for each structure.

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    Florida Senate - 2005                           CS for SB 1486
    597-1677C-05




 1         3.(c)  If there was a hurricane loss for a prior

 2  hurricane or hurricanes during the calendar year, the insurer

 3  may apply a deductible to a subsequent hurricane which that is

 4  the greater of the remaining amount of the hurricane

 5  deductible or the amount of the deductible that applies to

 6  perils other than a hurricane. Insurers may require

 7  policyholders to report hurricane losses that are below the

 8  hurricane deductible or to maintain receipts or other records

 9  of such hurricane losses in order to apply such losses to

10  subsequent hurricane claims.

11         4.(d)  If there are hurricane losses in a calendar year

12  on more than one policy issued by the same insurer or an

13  insurer in the same insurer group, the hurricane deductible

14  shall be the highest amount stated in any one of the policies.

15  If a policyholder who had a hurricane loss under the prior

16  policy is provided or offered a lower hurricane deductible

17  under the new or renewal policy, the insurer must notify the

18  policyholder, in writing, at the time the lower hurricane

19  deductible is provided or offered, that the lower hurricane

20  deductible will not apply until January 1 of the following

21  calendar year.

22         (b)  For commercial residential property insurance

23  policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2006, the

24  insurer must offer the policyholder the following alternative

25  hurricane deductibles:

26         1.  A hurricane deductible that applies on an annual

27  basis as provided in paragraph (a); and

28         2.  A hurricane deductible that applies to each

29  hurricane.

30         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

31  law.

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    Florida Senate - 2005                           CS for SB 1486
    597-1677C-05




 1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
 2                         Senate Bill 1486

 3                                 

 4  The committee substitute amends s. 627.701, F.S., to provide
    that the annual hurricane deductible requirement applies to
 5  personal lines residential policies issued or renewed on or
    after May 1, 2005. For commercial residential policies issued
 6  or renewed on or after January 1, 2006, the insurer would be
    required to offer the policyholder the option of: 1) a
 7  hurricane deductible that applies on an annual basis (as
    required for personal lines policies), and 2) a hurricane
 8  deductible that applies to each hurricane.

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.