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Lynne McChristian
Our blogger, Lynne McChristian, is the Florida representative for the Insurance Information Institute and is based in Tampa.
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About this Blog
No one can predict the future, but insurers have to try. That is the very nature of the insurance business -- to price and sell a product before the true cost of hurricanes, floods, wildfires and other types of claims are known. Private insurance companies must operate their businesses to have the money on hand – in advance – to pay anticipated claims. They can't go back and make up the difference if they get it wrong. This blog’s goal is to help Florida residents understand their insurance coverage, the issues and their choices. The more you know the better the insurance decisions you make.
Category Archives: General
Florida building codes get top marks, yet lots of homes built before codes got smart
When it comes to building codes, Florida gets an A. Our fair – and increasingly hardy-built – state was one of three states earning more than 90 points on a 100-point rating scale to grade the regulations and processes for … Continue reading
Posted in Building Codes, General, Homeowners+Renters
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More eyes needed on insurance fraud, including consumers’
It’s a fact that Florida’s no-fault auto insurance system is flush with fraud. Recently, the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration validated that with a three-day sweep of pain clinics in Miami-Dade County and found regulatory violations in 90 percent … Continue reading
Posted in General, Property Insurance Fraud
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Silence deafening on bank’s rescinding sinkhole requirement
When Citizens Property Insurance had its sinkhole rate hearing in September, there were people ginning up the hubbub by proclaiming that “people would lose their homes because lenders required sinkhole coverage.” I put those words in quotes since they were … Continue reading
Posted in General
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Florida 2011 hurricane season uneventful, yet dismissing storm threat is for dreamers
Believing that Florida will never have another hurricane is a lot like believing in Santa Claus. You really want it to be true. And, now that Hurricane Season 2011 is officially over, it’s so delightful to dream that you can … Continue reading
Hurricane Rina reminder that late-season hurricanes happen
The spooky thing about the end of October is that Halloween does NOT signal the end of hurricane season. Hurricane Rina is reminding us that there is (at least) more than one month left – and that maybe around Thanksgiving … Continue reading
Posted in General, Hurricanes
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How a scratched fender is payday for fraudsters
There was an Auto Insurance Fraud Summit in Miami this week at which a woman told her story of a minor parking lot accident, a scratched fender and a resulting lawsuit. Her voice was shaky as she recalled the first … Continue reading
Posted in Auto, Auto Insurance Fraud, General, Insuring Florida
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Sanity for sinkhole rates, but sinkhole claims still insane
Come on. Did you really think Citizens Property Insurance would get approval to raise statewide sinkhole rates an average of 447 percent? I’ll bet they didn’t think so either. So why would our state-run insurance company ask for such an … Continue reading
Citizens rate hearing shows facts no match for fury
I attended the Citizens Property Insurance rate hearing in Tampa on Tuesday. At the Convention Center, I parked next to a gaudy car wrapped in advertising for a “sinkhole specialist.” At a break in the four-hour meeting, another so-called sinkhole … Continue reading
Longevity, love and life insurance
“I hope the Lord gives us longevity,” said my father as we talked about family, his aches and aging. Dad was already in his early 80s at the time, so that comment struck me in a very profound way. I … Continue reading
Posted in General, Life Insurance
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Flooding got your attention? Don’t watch, take action with flood insurance
Remember when your mother forced you to take a spoonful of medicine because it was good for you? Flood insurance is good for you, and Mother Nature (and her daughter Hurricane Irene) just spooned out a dose that should motivate … Continue reading
Posted in Flood, General, Homeowners+Renters, Property insurance
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