CS/CS/HB 1149 2024
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to policy cancellations and 2
nonrenewals by property insurers; amending s. 3
626.9201, F.S.; prohibiting authorized insurers and 4
eligible surplus lines insurers from canceling and 5
nonrenewing policies covering dwellings and 6
residential properties damaged by covered perils 7
within certain timeframes; providing exceptions to 8
prohibitions against insurers' policy cancellations 9
and nonrenewals within certain timeframes under 10
certain circumstances; providing construction; 11
providing definitions; provi ding applicability; 12
authorizing the Financial Services Commission to adopt 13
rules and the Commissioner of Insurance Regulation to 14
issue orders; amending s. 627.4133, F.S.; prohibiting 15
eligible surplus lines insurers from canceling and 16
nonrenewing policies c overing dwellings and 17
residential properties damaged by covered perils 18
within certain timeframes; revising the circumstances 19
and timeframes under which authorized insurers are 20
prohibited from canceling and nonrenewing policies 21
covering dwellings and reside ntial properties damaged 22
by covered perils within certain timeframes; providing 23
exceptions to prohibitions against eligible surplus 24
lines insurers' policy cancellations and nonrenewals, 25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
and revising exceptions to prohibitions against 26
authorized insurers' p olicy cancellations and 27
nonrenewals, within certain timeframes under certain 28
circumstances; revising construction; revising 29
conditions under which a structure is deemed to be 30
repaired; revising the definition of the term 31
"insurer" to include eligible surpl us lines insurers; 32
defining the term "damage"; authorizing the 33
commissioner to issue orders under certain 34
circumstances; providing applicability; providing an 35
effective date. 36
37
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 38
39
Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 626.9201, Florida 40
Statutes, is amended, and subsection (1) of that section is 41
republished, to read: 42
626.9201 Notice of cancellation or nonrenewal. — 43
(1) An insurer issuing a policy providing coverage for 44
property, casualty, suret y, or marine insurance must give the 45
first named insured at least 45 days' advance written notice of 46
nonrenewal. If the policy is not to be renewed, the written 47
notice shall state the reasons as to why the policy is not to be 48
renewed. This subsection does not apply: 49
(a) If the insurer has manifested its willingness to 50
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renew, and the offer is not rescinded prior to expiration of the 51
policy; or 52
(b) If a notice of cancellation for nonpayment of premium 53
is provided under subsection (2). 54
(2) An insurer issuing a policy providing coverage for 55
property, casualty, surety, or marine insurance must give the 56
named insured written notice of cancellation or termination 57
other than nonrenewal at least 45 days before the effective date 58
of the cancellation or terminati on, including in the written 59
notice the reasons for the cancellation or termination, except 60
that: 61
(a) If cancellation is for nonpayment of premium, at least 62
10 days' written notice of cancellation accompanied by the 63
reason for cancellation must be given. As used in this 64
paragraph, the term "nonpayment of premium" means the failure of 65
the named insured to discharge when due any of his or her 66
obligations in connection with the payment of premiums on a 67
policy or an installment of such a premium, whether the premium 68
or installment is payable directly to the insurer or its agent 69
or indirectly under any plan for financing premiums or extension 70
of credit or the failure of the named insured to maintain 71
membership in an organization if such membership is a conditio n 72
precedent to insurance coverage. The term also includes the 73
failure of a financial institution to honor the check of an 74
applicant for insurance which was delivered to a licensed agent 75
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for payment of a premium, even if the agent previously delivered 76
or transferred the premium to the insurer. If a correctly 77
dishonored check represents payment of the initial premium, the 78
contract and all contractual obligations are void ab initio 79
unless the nonpayment is cured within the earlier of 5 days 80
after actual notice by certified mail is received by the 81
applicant or 15 days after notice is sent to the applicant by 82
certified mail or registered mail, and, if the contract is void, 83
any premium received by the insurer from a third party shall be 84
refunded to that party in f ull; and 85
(b) If cancellation or termination occurs during the first 86
90 days during which the insurance is in force and if the 87
insurance is canceled or terminated for reasons other than 88
nonpayment, at least 20 days' written notice of cancellation or 89
termination accompanied by the reason for cancellation or 90
termination must be given, except if there has been a material 91
misstatement or misrepresentation or failure to comply with the 92
underwriting requirements established by the insurer ; and 93
(c)1. An insurer may not cancel or nonrenew a personal 94
residential or commercial residential property insurance policy 95
covering a dwelling or residential property located in this 96
state which has been damaged by a covered peril until the 97
earlier of the completion of repair or the expiration of one 98
subsequent renewal of the policy that was in force at the time 99
of the loss. 100
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2. Notwithstanding subparagraph 1., an insurer or agent 101
may cancel or nonrenew such a policy prior to the repair of the 102
dwelling or residential property : 103
a. Upon 10 days' notice: 104
(I) For nonpayment of premium; or 105
(II) If the named insured no longer has an insurable 106
interest in the property; or 107
b. Upon 45 days' notice: 108
(I) For a material misstatement or fraud related to the 109
claim; 110
(II) If the insurer or its agent has made a reasonable 111
written inquiry to the insured as to the status of the repair 112
and the insured has failed within 30 calendar days to provide 113
information that is responsive to the inquiry to the address or 114
e-mail account designated by the insurer or its agent; or 115
(III) If the insurer has paid policy limits under a 116
personal residential property insurance policy for a loss to the 117
insured dwelling that was damaged, or policy limits under a 118
commercial residential property insurance po licy for a loss to 119
each insured structure that was damaged. 120
3. If the insurer elects to nonrenew a policy after the 121
expiration of the time in subparagraph 1., the insurer must 122
provide notice in accordance with subsection (1). 123
4. This paragraph does not prevent the insurer from 124
canceling or nonrenewing the policy after the repair is 125
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completed for the same reasons the insurer would otherwise have 126
canceled or nonrenewed the policy but for subparagraph 1. 127
5. For purposes of this paragraph: 128
a. A structure is deemed to be repaired when substantially 129
completed and restored to the extent that it is insurable by: 130
(I) Another authorized insurer writing policies in this 131
state if the structure is currently insured by an authorized 132
insurer; or 133
(II) Another authorized or eligible surplus lines insurer 134
writing policies in this state if the structure is currently 135
insured by an eligible surplus lines insurer. 136
b. The term "insurer" means an authorized insurer or an 137
eligible surplus lines insurer. 138
c. The term "damage" includes, but is not limited to, 139
flood damage related to a hurricane if flood is a covered peril 140
under the personal residential or commercial residential 141
property insurance policy. 142
6. In the event of widespread, significant flooding, as 143
determined by the Commissioner of Insurance Regulation, which is 144
caused by a hurricane or other natural event, the commissioner 145
may issue an order preventing insurers from canceling or 146
nonrenewing personal residential or commercial residential 147
property insurance pol icies covering dwellings or residential 148
properties located within zip codes directly affected by such 149
flooding, as determined by the commissioner. If a claim is made 150
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while such an order is in effect, an insurer may not cancel or 151
nonrenew a personal residen tial or commercial residential 152
property insurance policy covering a dwelling or residential 153
property until the earlier of the completion of repair or the 154
expiration of one subsequent renewal of the policy that was in 155
force at the time of the loss, even if the personal residential 156
or commercial residential property insurance policy does not 157
cover the peril of flood. An order issued pursuant to this 158
subparagraph may remain in effect for an initial period of 90 159
days and may be renewed for subsequent 90 -day periods, not to 160
exceed a total of 270 days. This subparagraph applies only to 161
coverage periods and does not alter coverage otherwise provided 162
by any insurance policy. 163
7. The commission may adopt rules, and the Commissioner of 164
Insurance Regulation may issue orders, necessary to implement 165
this paragraph. 166
Section 2. Paragraph (e) of subsection (2) of section 167
627.4133, Florida Statutes, is amended, and subsection (1) of 168
that section is republished, to read: 169
627.4133 Notice of cancellation, nonrenewal, or r enewal 170
premium.— 171
(1) Except as provided in subsection (2): 172
(a) An insurer issuing a policy providing coverage for 173
workers' compensation and employer's liability insurance, 174
property, casualty, except mortgage guaranty, surety, or marine 175
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insurance, other than motor vehicle insurance subject to s. 176
627.728, shall give the first -named insured at least 45 days' 177
advance written notice of nonrenewal or of the renewal premium. 178
If the policy is not to be renewed, the written notice shall 179
state the reason or reaso ns as to why the policy is not to be 180
renewed. This requirement applies only if the insured has 181
furnished all of the necessary information so as to enable the 182
insurer to develop the renewal premium prior to the expiration 183
date of the policy to be renewed. 184
(b) An insurer issuing a policy providing coverage for 185
property, casualty, except mortgage guaranty, surety, or marine 186
insurance, other than motor vehicle insurance subject to s. 187
627.728 or s. 627.7281, shall give the first -named insured 188
written notice of cancellation or termination other than 189
nonrenewal at least 45 days prior to the effective date of the 190
cancellation or termination, including in the written notice the 191
reason or reasons for the cancellation or termination, except 192
that: 193
1. When cancellation is for nonpayment of premium, at 194
least 10 days' written notice of cancellation accompanied by the 195
reason therefor shall be given. As used in this subparagraph and 196
s. 440.42(3), the term "nonpayment of premium" means failure of 197
the named insured to disch arge when due any of her or his 198
obligations in connection with the payment of premiums on a 199
policy or any installment of such premium, whether the premium 200
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is payable directly to the insurer or its agent or indirectly 201
under any premium finance plan or exten sion of credit, or 202
failure to maintain membership in an organization if such 203
membership is a condition precedent to insurance coverage. 204
"Nonpayment of premium" also means the failure of a financial 205
institution to honor an insurance applicant's check after 206
delivery to a licensed agent for payment of a premium, even if 207
the agent has previously delivered or transferred the premium to 208
the insurer. If a dishonored check represents the initial 209
premium payment, the contract and all contractual obligations 210
shall be void ab initio unless the nonpayment is cured within 211
the earlier of 5 days after actual notice by certified mail is 212
received by the applicant or 15 days after notice is sent to the 213
applicant by certified mail or registered mail, and if the 214
contract is void, any premium received by the insurer from a 215
third party shall be refunded to that party in full; and 216
2. When such cancellation or termination occurs during the 217
first 60 days during which the insurance is in force and the 218
insurance is canceled or termin ated for reasons other than 219
nonpayment of premium, at least 20 days' written notice of 220
cancellation or termination accompanied by the reason therefor 221
shall be given except where there has been a material 222
misstatement or misrepresentation or failure to comp ly with the 223
underwriting requirements established by the insurer. 224
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After the policy has been in effect for 60 days, no such policy 226
shall be canceled by the insurer except when there has been a 227
material misstatement, a nonpayment of premium, a failure to 228
comply with underwriting requirements established by the insurer 229
within 60 days of the date of effectuation of coverage, or a 230
substantial change in the risk covered by the policy or when the 231
cancellation is for all insureds under such policies for a given 232
class of insureds. This subsection does not apply to 233
individually rated risks having a policy term of less than 90 234
days. 235
(c) If an insurer fails to provide the 45 -day or 20-day 236
written notice required under this section, the coverage 237
provided to the named insured shall remain in effect until 45 238
days after the notice is given or until the effective date of 239
replacement coverage obtained by the named insured, whichever 240
occurs first. The premium for the coverage shall remain the same 241
during any such extension p eriod except that, in the event of 242
failure to provide notice of nonrenewal, if the rate filing then 243
in effect would have resulted in a premium reduction, the 244
premium during such extension of coverage shall be calculated 245
based upon the later rate filing. 246
(d) Notwithstanding paragraph (b), Citizens Property 247
Insurance Corporation in underwriting risks that, prior to the 248
date of the application, were most recently insured by an 249
insurer that has been placed in receivership under chapter 631, 250
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may immediately cancel a policy insuring such risk that has been 251
in effect for 90 days or less for material misrepresentation or 252
failure to comply with underwriting requirements established 253
before the effectuation of coverage. 254
(2) With respect to any personal lines or com mercial 255
residential property insurance policy, including, but not 256
limited to, any homeowner, mobile home owner, farmowner, 257
condominium association, condominium unit owner, apartment 258
building, or other policy covering a residential structure or 259
its contents: 260
(e)1. An authorized insurer may not cancel or nonrenew a 261
personal residential or commercial residential property 262
insurance policy covering a dwelling or residential property 263
located in this state which has been damaged by a covered peril 264
until the earlier of the completion of repair or the expiration 265
of one subsequent renewal of the policy that was in force at the 266
time of the loss: 267
a. For a period of 90 days after the dwelling or 268
residential property has been repaired, if such property has 269
been damaged as a result of a hurricane or wind loss that is the 270
subject of the declaration of emergency pursuant to s. 252.36 271
and the filing of an order by the Commissioner of Insurance 272
Regulation. 273
b. Until the earlier of when the dwelling or residential 274
property has been repaired or 1 year after the insurer issues 275
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the final claim payment, if such property was damaged by any 276
covered peril and sub -subparagraph a. does not apply. 277
2. Notwithstanding subparagraph 1. However, an insurer or 278
agent may cancel or nonrenew such a policy prior to the repair 279
of the dwelling or residential property: 280
a. Upon 10 days' notice : 281
(I) For nonpayment of premium; or 282
(II) If the named insured no longer has an insurable 283
interest in the property; or 284
b. Upon 45 days' notice: 285
(I) For a material misstatement or fraud related to the 286
claim; 287
(II) If the insurer or its agent has made a reasonable 288
written inquiry to the insured as to the status of the repair 289
and the insured has failed within 30 calendar days to provide 290
information that is responsive to the inquiry to the address or 291
e-mail account designated by the insurer or its agent If the 292
insurer determines that the insured has unreasonably caused a 293
delay in the repair of the dwelling ; or 294
(III) If the insurer has paid policy limits under a 295
personal residential property insurance policy for a loss to the 296
insured dwelling that was damaged, or policy limits under a 297
commercial residential property insurance policy for a loss to 298
each insured structure that was damaged . 299
3. If the insurer elects to nonrenew a policy after the 300
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expiration of the time in subparagraph 1., the insurer must 301
provide notice in accordance with subsection (1) covering a 302
property that has been damaged, the insurer shall provide at 303
least 90 days' notice to the insured that the insurer intends to 304
nonrenew the policy 90 days after the dwelling or residential 305
property has been repaired . 306
4. Nothing in This paragraph does not shall prevent the 307
insurer from canceling or nonrenewing the policy after the 308
repair is completed 90 days after the repairs are complete for 309
the same reasons the insurer would otherwise have canceled or 310
nonrenewed the policy but for the limitations of subparagraph 1. 311
The Financial Services Commission may adopt rules, and the 312
Commissioner of Insu rance Regulation may issue orders, necessary 313
to implement this paragraph. 314
5.4. This paragraph shall also applies apply to personal 315
residential and commercial residential policies covering 316
property that was damaged as the result of Hurricane Ian or 317
Hurricane Nicole. 318
6.5. For purposes of this paragraph: 319
a. A structure is deemed to be repaired when substantially 320
completed and restored to the extent that it is insurable by : 321
(I) Another authorized insurer writing policies in this 322
state if the structure is currently insured by an authorized 323
insurer; or 324
(II) Another authorized or eligible surplus lines insurer 325
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writing policies in this state if the structure is currently 326
insured by an eligible surplus lines insurer . 327
b. The term "insurer" means an author ized insurer or an 328
eligible surplus lines insurer . 329
c. Except for subparagraph 5., the term "d amage" includes, 330
but is not limited to, flood damage related to a hurricane if 331
flood is a covered peril under the personal residential or 332
commercial residential property insurance policy. 333
7. In the event of widespread, significant flooding, as 334
determined by the Commissioner of Insurance Regulation, which is 335
caused by a hurricane or other natural event, the commissioner 336
may issue an order preventing insurers from canceling or 337
nonrenewing personal residential or commercial residential 338
property insurance policies covering dwellings or residential 339
properties located within zip codes directly affected by such 340
flooding, as determined by the commissioner. If a claim is made 341
while such an order is in effect, an insurer may not cancel or 342
nonrenew a personal residential or commercial residential 343
property insurance policy covering a dwelling or residential 344
property until the earlier of the completion of repair or the 345
expiration of one subsequent renewal of the policy that was in 346
force at the time of the loss, even if the personal residential 347
or commercial residential property insurance policy does not 348
cover the peril of flood. An order issued pursuant to this 349
subparagraph may remain in effect for an initial period of 90 350
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days and may be renewed for subsequent 90 -day periods, not to 351
exceed a total of 270 days. This subparagraph applies only to 352
coverage periods and does not alter coverage otherwise provided 353
by any insurance polic y. 354
8. The commission may adopt rules, and the Commissioner of 355
Insurance Regulation may issue orders, necessary to implement 356
this paragraph. 357
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2024. 358