The Home Insurance Guru

Please call L & S Insurance at 1-888-244-7400 for quotes on Home, Auto, Flood, Car, Business & Commercial, & Life & Financial products as well! Please enjoy the full article below, but see how Public adjustors really get you more money!!! We call it FRAUD!!!!

Florida CFO and State Fire Marshal Jeff Atwater, alongside Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, has made more than 30 arrests during the second wave of a collaborative state and local operation known as “Operation Flames and Floods.” The investigation exposed an extensive scheme in which a Miami public adjuster named Jorge Espinosa recruited homeowners to stage fire and water damage claims in residential homes in order to defraud multiple insurance companies.

Previously arrested in February 2014 for crimes related to this fraud ring, investigators have since uncovered 25 more fraudulent claims tied to Espinosa, representing total losses of more than $14 million.

“It is clear that this scheme was driven by greed, and unfortunately, it is the honest policyholders in our state who are left on the hook to cover the millions of dollars that were stolen,” said CFO Jeff Atwater.

Atwater credited the work of the Department’s investigators, as well the support of the Miami-Dade Police Department’s Arson Unit and Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, in stopping the individuals and holding them accountable.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said the insurance thieves were making their money by “Reaching into the wallets of every honest citizen of Florida. Their profits come from our pain and hard work. That is why these arrests are so important.”

Please call L & S Insurance at 1-888-244-7400 for free quotes on Home, Auto, Flood, Car, Business & Commercial, & Life & Financial products as well.

Eight Broward County, Fla., residents have been arrested for PIP (personal injury protection) fraud after an investigation by the Department of Financial Services’ Division of Insurance Fraud revealed the individuals had staged a motor vehicle accident in Fort Lauderdale using a hotel van filled with passengers who participated in the scam.

Ronie Petidos of Corals Springs, Patrick Logene of Tamarac and Marc La Pierre of Pompano Beach were arrested for organizing the accident and sending the participants to clinics they controlled. The participants were also instructed and agreed to file fraudulent insurance claims and begin unnecessary therapy treatments.

The arrested van passengers include Shaeronda Jackson and Jeffrey Louis of Fort Lauderdale and Jean Regisma of Lauderhill. Stephen Blanc of Lauderdale Lakes and Kennsly Giles of Fort Lauderdale, who were also arrested, were recruited to ride in the at fault vehicle that crashed into the van.

Please read the full article below.

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2015/05/14/368112.htm

Poly Pipes which are grey and look like White PVC, but are Grey have been a huge problem since 2012. No company would accept them and they are a problem for any homeowner. Buyers need to beware that they can and will burst with water damage claims and then they can be 2-3 in a  year once it starts. sellers need to know that a buyer will need to replace them at some point so prices should be adjusted when a home is sold or purchased.

Citizens Insurance will now write a policy on a home that is less than 30 years of age and no history of any water damage claims!!! The claim issue is a huge one since the computers called CLUE will verify a claim has occurred and will cause issues after the policy is issued and after closing. I know most of you do not want issues with your deals and clients so please be careful. The pipes were used in the years 1080-1994 and 30 years old is 1986 and newer which covers most of those years!! The pipes still need to be dealt with, but at least most closings can now happen as long as the pipes are fully disclosed and the cost of repairs is reflected in the sales price. I hope this helps most of you and please remember to give us a call. Please call L & S at 1-888-244-7400 for quotes on Home, Flood, Auto, Business & Commercial, & Life & Financial products as well. Please come to one of my Insurance lunch and learn classes soon or let me know if you have interest in having me do a class at your office.

Thank you and happy selling!!
Lee the HomeInsuranceGuru!!

Please call L & S Insurance at 1-888-244-7400 for free quotes on Home, Flood, Auto, Business & Commercial, & Life & financial products as well.

Citizens Property Insurance Corp.’s Board of Governors approved a $3.9 billion risk transfer package for the 2015 hurricane season that completely eliminates the potential assessment risk on Florida policyholders in the event of a 1-in-100 year storm.

By unanimous vote on April 30, board members approved a package that includes $1.855 billion in traditional reinsurance and $2.05 billion in capital market catastrophe bonds. The combination bolsters Citizens’ surplus and existing risk transfer resources to enable it to pay claims in the event of a “storm of the century” without having to levy assessments on Florida policyholders, the company said in a statement.

The vote allows Citizens to eliminate potential assessments that in 2011 totaled $11.6 billion. Coupled with an increasingly robust private market that has allowed Citizens to reduce its policy count and exposure, the additional coverage puts Citizens in the best financial shape since its creation in 2002, Citizens Chairman Chris Gardner said following the vote.

“Eliminating the risk of assessments on Citizens customers and Florida policyholders has been the top priority for Citizens over the past several years and I’m happy to announce that we have reached that goal,” Gardner said. “As the private market continues to strengthen,

Please enjoy the full article below!

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2015/05/11/367458.htm

Please call L & S Insurance at 1-888-244-7400 for quotes on Home, Auto, Flood, Business & Commercial, & Life & Financial products as well.

Scientists are planning to send more drones flying into hurricanes that develop during the upcoming Atlantic storm season.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration first launched the 13-pound winged drones into Hurricane Edouard in September. This year, the unmanned aircraft have more sophisticated sensors that will allow them to fly farther from the “hurricane hunter” aircraft that relay storm data to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Please enjoy the full article below;

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2015/05/06/366964.htm

Please call  L & S Insurance at 1-888-244-7400 for quotes on Home, Auto, Flood, Business & Commercial & Life & Financial Insurance as well.

The Florida Department of Financial Services’ Division of Insurance Fraud has arrested Roxana Suarez La Rosa on charges related to PIP (personal injury protection) fraud. In 2012, the Saint Jose Injury Center in Jacksonville, Fla., which Suarez La Rosa owned and operated, generated more than 50 insurance claims. During this time, at least three cooperating witnesses indicated that they participated in staged automobile crashes. Each stated that Suarez La Rosa had participants sign for treatments they never received in order to fraudulently bill their insurance companies.

Suarez La Rosa faces charges of fraud and racketeering and up to 50 years in prison if convicted. Additional cases related to the Saint Jose Injury Center are pending. The case is being prosecuted by office of 4th Judicial Circuit State Attorney Angela Corey.

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southeast/2015/05/04/366686.htm

Please remember to call L & S Insurance at 1-888- for quotes on Home, Auto, Flood, Business & Commercial, & Life & Financial products as well.

FIGA ASSESSMENTS

Senate Bill 836 by Senator Latvala passed out of the Senate with a unanimous vote in support and has now been sent over to the House, where it was substituted for House Bill 557 and sent to the Governor. Previously reported on in-depth, the bills would revise the procedure in which insurers pay and recoup assessments levied against them by the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association (“FIGA”). It would allow for more opportunities for insurers to remit assessments after they are collected from policyholders, rather than advancing the funds to FIGA, at the option of FIGA.

FLOOD INSURANCE

Senate Bill 1094 by Senator Brandes passed out of the Senate with a unanimous vote in support and was sent over to the House. Its companion, House Bill 895 by Representative Ahern, was substituted for the Senate version and passed the House with an 89-26 vote in support. The bill now heads to the Governor, to be signed into law.

Reported last week in-depth, the bill would revise the flood insurance reform passed by the Legislature last year. The bill allows for the sale of “flexible flood insurance” and allowing private insurers to obtain certification from the OIR, which would state and compare the coverage specification of the policy with that of the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”). “Flexible Flood Insurance” allows consumers to purchase flood coverage limits which will cover the outstanding mortgage, but will not be enough to repair the home. The bill also allows insurers to provide credits to the policyholder if the OIR determines that the rate being charged was excessive. This practice would be done in lieu of cash refunds.

CITIZENS ELIGIBILITY

Senate Bill 842 by Senator Benacquisto was substituted on the Senate floor for its House companion, House Bill 715 by Representative Raschein, which had already passed out of the House with a unanimous vote in support. The bill then passed the Senate with a unanimous vote in support as well. The bill now heads to the Governor’s desk for consideration.

As discussed in past weeks, the bill would allow a home existing seaward of the coastal construction line (“CCL”) to be substantially improved and still be eligible to receive Citizens coverage. Such improvements could be the repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or improvement to the structure that costs 50% or more of the market value. The bill would continue the prohibition against Citizens coverage eligibility for new homes seaward of the CCL.