P&C bills that passed in 2011 - Florida (updated)

First reported May 9, final update June 28, 2011

Listed in the table below are bills impacting property & casualty insurers that passed during the 2011 Florida Legislative Session.  All bills have been signed into law by the Governor.

Final  text	Bill info	Summary	Status*
Ch.2011-039	S408	Big property package, including: (a) sinkhole insurance reform; (b) 5-year statute of limitation for all property insurance claims from date of loss; (c) 3-year claim-filing deadline for hurricane & windstorm claims from date of event; (d) RCV holdback for dwelling & contents; (e) public adjuster reform; (f) "use & file" bar extended to May 2012; (g) enhanced process to recover reinsurance costs in rates; (h) modest changes to Citizens; (i) changes to nonrenewal, cancellation laws.	Became LAW 5/17/2011
Ch.2011-160	H99	Commercial rate deregulation - additional exemptions from rate pre-approval.  See Commercial rate deregulation.	Became LAW  6/17/2011
Ch.2011-174	H 1087	Insurance – 11 areas of insurance regulation.  See H1087 mini train.	Became LAW  6/17/2011
		Anti-Fraud: In next 3 unrelated bills:
Ch.2011-059 (sec. 9)	S2132	- Enables DFS to accept donations to fund fraud prosecutors.	Became LAW  5/26/2011
Ch.2011-174 (sec. 19)	H 1087	- Increases penalties for motor vehicle insurance fraud.	Became LAW 6/17/2011
Ch.2011-066 (sec. 7)	S2160	- Changes crash report requirements.	Became LAW 5/26/2011
Ch.2011-226	H1007	Insurer Insolvency - (a) allows insurers to renegotiate surplus notes issued by Insurance Capital Build-Up Incentive Program; (b) amends requirements for obtaining credit for reinsurance; and (c) enhances liquidation and rehabilitation laws.	Became LAW 6/27/2011
Ch.2011-046	S1816	Surplus Lines Tax - changes collection of surplus lines taxes per federal Nonadmitted & Reinsurance Reform Act of 2010 [part of Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform], which limits state regulatory authority over surplus lines insurance to home state of policyholder.	Became LAW 5/26/2011
Ch.2011-233	H479	Medical malpractice - (a) requires out-of-state doctors to apply for a certificate to testify as an expert witness in Florida, and enables Florida to discipline such doctors if they have offered "deceptive or fraudulent" testimony; (b) eliminates requirement that a medical malpractice insurance policy include a clause authorizing the insurer to settle within policy limits without permission of the insured, and eliminates prohibition against a clause giving the insured the exclusive right to veto a settlement within the policy limits; (c) provide immunity from suit for doctors who volunteer to help high school and collegiate sports teams.	Became LAW 6/28/2011
Ch.2011-215	S142	Negligence (a.k.a. "crashworthiness") - establishes comparative fault system in torts involving defective products, permitting juries to consider fault of all persons who contributed to accident when apportioning fault among them.	Became LAW 6/23/2011

*A bill may have one or more effective dates that are different from the date the bill became law.  “Ordered enrolled” means that a bill has been passed by both the House and Senate; the next step is to “enroll” (ER) the bill and send it to the Governor for action. After receipt, the Governor has 15 days to act on a bill (sign it, veto it, or allow it to become law without signature).

This summary was prepared by Perry Cone and posted at www.tallyinslaw.com/

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