Florida lawmakers discuss home insurance crisis during roundtable
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Lawmakers came together Saturday to find solutions to Florida's home insurance crisis and discuss the impact climate change has had on the problem. Congresswoman Kathy Castor hosted a special roundtable discussion in Shore Acres, which is one area that suffered from significant flooding. During big storms like Idalia and Tropical Storm Eta as well as Debby the Shore Acres neighborhood in St. Pete saw significant flooding. During Idalia, at least 1,200 of the roughly 2,600 homes flooded.
Meghan Martin saw up to 18 inches of water in her home. "We've lived here for eight years and the first four or five were amazing. Unfortunately, we've flooded twice now in the last three years," Martin said. Martin said her home insurance has more than tripled over the last few years. Last year, Florida saw some of the sharpest home insurance premium increases in the country.
A map from the National Bureau of Economic Research shows the average annual home insurance premiums. Florida is in dark red with several counties in South Florida reporting an average annual premium of $4,000 or more. "We are paying more for our property insurance here in the state of Florida than any other state right now.