RUSKIN, Fla. — Ruskin homeowner Lionel St. Hilaire emailed ABC Action News for answers after receiving a notice of non-renewal from Florida Peninsula alerting him that he would be dropped in the middle of hurricane season.
"I was really shocked," he told ABC Action News Anchor Nadeen Yanes. "Because I was never late with any payments, and again, the house was built in 2017. No issues whatsoever, never filed any claims."
According to the notice of non-renewal, Florida Peninsula wrote:
"We are reducing our exposure to hurricanes and other perils. We are reluctantly taking this step to prudently manage our risk, remain financially viable, and continue to protect the interests of all our policyholders in the state."
You can read the full notice of non-renewal below.
But St. Hilaire said besides his home being a recently new build, he also has hurricane-impact doors and windows, so he wants answers as to what kind of risk it poses to the company.
"They didn't give me enough information. What they went me is not enough to understand why," St. Hilaire added.
According to the Insurance Information Institute, they have not heard of any reports of Florida Peninsula dropping policies. However, spokesman Mark Friedlander said it is a common practice for companies to adjust their risks.
"We are not aware of any more beyond the one viewer who contacted you," Friedlander said. "It is very common for property insurers to reassess risk exposures and make adjustments to the policies they are writing, meaning customers can get non-renewed."
Friedlander said that just because one company might not be writing policies in one area doesn't mean another company is not. He recommends that if you are dropped off, you shop around.
"Every company has different standards, different guidelines," Friedlander said. "Some look at risk in certain areas, some have less risk in certain zip codes, some want to spread their risk around more."
ABC Action News emailed Florida Peninsula's customer service and media relations team to see how many policies they are dropping in the state. We also emailed the Office of Insurance Regulation for any information and are still waiting to hear back.
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