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FLORIDA - The number of policies under Florida’s state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corporation has dropped to its lowest level in nearly three years as private insurers continue to assume coverage through a state-led depopulation program.
As of February 21st, Citizens reported 844,688 active policies, marking a sharp decline from 945,005 just a week earlier.
This reduction follows the latest round of depopulation, where private insurers were authorized to take over as many as 342,918 Citizens policies.
However, the final number of policies transferred typically falls below the maximum allowed.
The last time Citizens’ policy count was below 850,000 was in March 2022, when it stood at 817,926.
The company had seen a surge in policies in recent years, reaching a peak of approximately 1.4 million in 2023 as private insurers scaled back coverage and raised rates due to financial instability.
However, state efforts to stabilize the private market and encourage depopulation have gradually brought Citizens’ numbers down.
Citizens President and CEO Tim Cerio recently told lawmakers that the company expects to reduce its total policies further, aiming to end 2025 with fewer than 771,000 policies.
Additional depopulation rounds are planned for March and April to continue shifting policies to private carriers.
Florida officials have long pushed to shrink Citizens’ policy count due to concerns about financial risks, particularly in the event of a major hurricane.
If Citizens were unable to cover claims following a disaster, policyholders statewide—including those insured by private companies—could face additional charges known as assessments.
However, the depopulation strategy has led to higher costs for some homeowners.
Under state law, Citizens policyholders must accept coverage from a private insurer if the new premium is no more than 20% higher than their Citizens rate.
For example, a homeowner receiving an offer that is 19% more expensive than their current policy would be required to switch to the private insurer.
In 2019, Citizens’ policy count dipped as low as 419,475, but Cerio suggested that those figures may have been artificially low due to financially unstable companies taking on policies they could not sustain.
Looking ahead, Cerio indicated that an ideal number of Citizens policies would be between 500,000 and 600,000, though Florida Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky believes the optimal figure is closer to 700,000.
Cerio also emphasized that private insurers are not absorbing the highest-risk policies in the depopulation process.