The Factors Behind Florida’s Soaring Home Insurance Premiums

Anyone in Florida who has opened a home insurance bill in the last few years knows premiums have been skyrocketing. New estimates from a data analysis company shows they’ve actually been rising faster than in any other state -- a lot faster.

The numbers show just how massive the impact has been on the wallets of Florida consumers, with home insurance costs up about 57% since 2015, according to LexisNexis Risk Solutions. That’s nearly triple the national average (21%) and far outpaces Nebraska, the state with the second biggest average home insurance hike (43%).

Climate change may take some of the blame: Warming oceans and an altered atmosphere are making hurricanes more likely to rapidly intensify and may make stronger storms more frequent. A recent run of hard-hitting hurricanes has pushed several Florida insurers into insolvency.

But there are also other, more mundane causes, according to insurance experts.