The American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) today issued the following statement, attributed to its assistant vice president of state government relations Logan McFaddin, regarding the House Civil Justice and Property Rights Subcommittee’s passage of House Bill 1525 relating to Motor Vehicle Insurance.
“APCIA is disappointed the bill to reform Florida’s no-fault auto insurance system that was passed by the House subcommittee today remains so substantially similar to legislation vetoed by Governor DeSantis last year. Like last year’s bill, the current proposal is likely to significantly increase auto insurance costs, especially for those who can least afford it. Approximately 40 percent of Florida drivers, mostly those who are low income and purchase minimum limits, could see their auto insurance costs skyrocket between 48 and 77 percent. Additionally, APCIA is concerned about the impact this legislation could have on the number of uninsured drivers in our state and the safety of our roads.
“Any attempt to repeal or reform Florida’s auto insurance system should focus on reducing consumer costs, preventing fraud and lawsuit abuse, and ensuring policyholder rights are protected, but House Bill 1525 does not achieve these goals.
“APCIA applauds the members who share in our concerns and took a stand to protect Florida drivers by opposing the bill today. We respectfully ask the Legislature to put the brakes on higher auto insurance costs and reconsider any attempts to reform Florida’s auto insurance system without also meaningfully reforming Florida’s bad faith laws.”