Florida homeowners just got hammered by years of skyrocketing insurance costs.
The insurance market teetered on the edge of total collapse.
And Ron DeSantis announced one Florida rate cut that Democrats can't stand.
DeSantis rolls out first major insurance rate relief in modern memory
Governor Ron DeSantis announced historic insurance rate cuts for Florida homeowners Monday.
Citizens Property Insurance policyholders across the state will see an average premium reduction of 8.7% starting spring 2026.
More than 330,000 homeowners in all 67 counties are getting rate decreases.
Over 150,000 policyholders will see their rates drop by 10% or more.
South Florida is getting the biggest relief.
Miami-Dade and Broward County homeowners will see average reductions around 14%.
Palm Beach County residents can expect an 11.9% average decrease.
Monroe County in the Florida Keys will see an average 11.3% reduction.
DeSantis credited the 2022 and 2023 insurance reform legislation for stabilizing Florida's insurance market.
Those reforms eliminated one-way attorney fees that allowed lawyers to milk the system and shut down assignment of benefits scams that exploded after hurricanes.
"Floridians are seeing rate reductions in both auto and homeowners insurance across the state, with additional relief coming soon," DeSantis said.
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/2010762048100045104?s=20
"The reductions in Citizens Insurance rates are the most significant in recent memory," DeSantis added.
"Premiums are lowering because we've enacted real reforms and withstood the pressure to reverse course," he stated.
The reforms are forcing private insurers to compete on price
Insurance Commissioner Mike Yaworsky says the reforms are working across all insurance market indicators.
"We are seeing nothing but good news across all data points for Florida's auto and home insurance markets," Yaworsky said.
"These positive results are entirely related to our historic tort reforms, driven largely by Governor DeSantis' leadership," he added.
The strengthening market has attracted 17 new insurers to Florida since the reforms passed.
Citizens Property Insurance has shrunk from 1.4 million policies to 395,144 as of January 2025.
That's a 50% reduction from the prior year and the lowest level in 14 years.
Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia says the reforms saved Florida's insurance market from total collapse.
"Four years ago, our insurance market was near collapse, which is why I stood alongside our Governor to create historic lawsuit reform, cut out the waste, fraud and abuse, and strengthen our insurance market," Ingoglia said.
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/2010731308461207856?s=20
Private insurers are filing rate decreases across the board.
Florida Peninsula filed for an 8.2% reduction.
Security First asked for an 8% decrease.
Universal Property & Casualty requested a 5.1% cut.
Auto insurers followed with USAA seeking a 7% reduction, State Farm filing for a cumulative 20% decrease, and Progressive requesting an 8% cut.
Democrats warning the market is fragile won't get any traction
Democrats are trying to downplay DeSantis's victory.
State Representative Kelly Skidmore warned the market remains fragile despite the rate cuts.
"Citizens' depopulation shows the private market is recovering, but the improvement is fragile," Skidmore said.
House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell pitched Democrat bills for an interstate risk-pooling compact.
"If we could just get our Republican colleagues to focus on the things that the people of Florida ask them to focus on, namely, property insurance, I think we could find better pathways to affordability," Driskell said.
The plan has zero chance of passing given Democrats' superminority status in both chambers.
https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/2010750419954544911?s=20
Republicans watched insurance companies flee Florida as frivolous lawsuits destroyed the market.
Fifteen property insurers went insolvent between 2020 and 2023.
Insurers posted more than $1 billion in underwriting losses in both 2020 and 2021.
Florida accounted for 76% of all insurance litigation nationwide despite having only 9% of homeowners insurance claims.
DeSantis and the Republican Legislature cracked down on the lawsuit abuse and assignment of benefits scams bleeding insurers dry.
https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/2010800974882095564?s=20
Democrats fought the reforms and demanded DeSantis reverse course.
Now homeowners are seeing the largest rate decreases in modern memory and Democrats are stuck warning the market could still collapse.
The reforms are working exactly as Republicans said they would.
Private insurers are flooding back into Florida and competing by lowering rates.
And Democrats who blocked reforms for years are scrambling to claim the recovery is somehow insufficient.
Florida homeowners know who fixed their insurance crisis.
Sources:
- Cody Butler, "Governor Ron DeSantis announced significant statewide insurance rate relief for Florida homeowners," WCTV, January 12, 2026.
- Emma Romano, "Florida homeowners to see insurance premium cuts starting spring 2026," WTSP, January 13, 2026.
- Ashlyn Webb, "Florida homeowners to see insurance rate drop after years of increases," WFTV, January 12, 2026.
- Forrest Saunders, "DeSantis rolls out insurance rate cuts, Dems warn of 'fragile' market," WTXL, January 12, 2026.
- Mark Friedlander, "The Verdict on Florida's Tort Reforms," Actuarial Review Magazine, July 26, 2024.
- Triple-I Issues Brief, "Triple-I: New Florida Law Has Potential to Reduce Insurance Costs," Insurance Information Institute, February 16, 2023.
