Limits on Property Insurance Rates Filed with the Office of Insurance Regulation:
HB 957 would amend Florida’s insurance rate-setting law to cap the amount a property insurer may seek in a rate filing submitted to the Office of Insurance Regulation. For property insurance filings made on or after July 1, 2025, an insurer could not request a rate more than 10 percent above the highest rate approved by the office within the previous 12 months. The bill leaves existing filing procedures in place but adds this new ceiling on requested increases for property insurance.
The measure applies only to property insurance filings and expressly excludes workers’ compensation, employer’s liability insurance, and motor vehicle insurance. In practical terms, it would constrain insurers’ ability to pursue large year-over-year premium increases in the Florida property insurance market and would give regulators a clearer statutory limit when reviewing filings.
HB 957 would directly amend section 627.062, Florida Statutes, which governs rate standards and filing procedures for insurers. The bill would add a new statutory restriction preventing property insurers from filing rates more than 10 percent above the highest rate approved in the prior 12 months, beginning July 1, 2025. This would affect property insurers, the Office of Insurance Regulation, and policyholders by limiting proposed premium increases and potentially increasing regulatory oversight of property insurance pricing.
The bill appears to have been introduced as a consumer-protection and affordability measure aimed at restraining property insurance premium growth. However, there is no recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided materials, and the bill ultimately died in the Insurance & Banking Subcommittee on June 16, 2025. Based on the text and its disposition, the measure likely faced skepticism or insufficient support from members concerned about market impacts, though no direct debate is available here.
The central point of contention is the proposed cap on requested property insurance rate increases. Supporters would likely view the 10 percent limit as a needed check on rising premiums and a way to protect homeowners and other property insurance consumers. Opponents or skeptics would likely argue that a statutory cap could interfere with actuarially justified rates, reduce insurer flexibility, and worsen availability or market stability in Florida’s property insurance market. Because no committee discussion is provided, the specific objections of individual legislators are not available.