TAMPA, Fla. — Heritage Insurance has filed a second rate reduction with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, a move CEO Ernie Garateix says should lower premiums for homeowners in the Tampa Bay and Miami areas once it is approved.
Garateix spoke to Tampa Bay 28 anchor Nadeen Yanes at the end of Hispanic Heritage Month sharing his story as Cuban American from Florida. He said he got into the insurance industry after it helped his own family escape Cuba.
"So my mom actually worked for Travelers Insurance in Cuba. Travelers actually helped her leave the country in 1959 when things were going not so well," Garateix said.
WATCH: Heritage Insurance CEO says Tampa Bay homeowners could soon see lower rates
His career eventually brought him to Heritage Insurance, where he has served as CEO since 2020. Right about the time homeowners across the state started seeing their insurance premiums begin to rise.
In recent years, Heritage Insurance drastically shrunk it's books by shedding policies and dropping homeowners in recent years. But Garateix says Florida's insurance market is improving and the company is growing again. Last year, Heritage dropped rates across the state, and it has just filed to drop rates again.
"Another 3 to 5% that's coming this year. Now that's a statewide average, right? And you take a look at some of the areas, Hillsborough County, we're going down more like 8 to 9%. Tri-county, we're actually going down more like 10%. So throughout the state it does differ by region," Garateix said.
Garateix explained how companies balance their risk across the state and are now opening up that risk again in ares like Tampa Bay and Miami — some of the riskiest parts of the state.
"That may be a little bit unique to us because again we shrunk our book in these areas over the past couple of years by design. So now we can write some more business in these areas right at a lower rate," Garateix said.
The potential relief comes against the backdrop of real strain for homeowners. Just last month, we sat down with a Cuban American grandmother, Sara Henry, who had Heritage Insurance and showed us her premium went up $655. Garateix responded to that disconnect.
"This year from Heritage you're making great profits, you're saving money, and she's still seeing, I mean, a huge increase," Yanes asked.
"I think one of the issues, right, we've talked about the education piece is home values, right? And this is a real issue for people, right, where home values are going up and when you look at that home value going up and the replacement cost, right, we have one of two options to say, well, do we not insure them up to that amount, and if you don't, then you're underinsured," Garateix said. "They can save some on the premium, but is that the situation you want to be in after an event to say, OK, that's great, I saved some premium, but now I can't replace my home, and we're seeing home values, especially here in Florida after COVID, I mean, going up 20, 30, 40%."
Garateix says Heritage has filed the second rate reduction with the Office of Insurance Regulation and is just waiting for it to be approved.
Pasco County mom of 5 takes in 3 children left without food or power whose mother faces neglect charges
Jasmine Young, a mother of 5, opened her home to three neglected girls as their mother faces child neglect charges for leaving them without food, power or water.
