Fla. Candidates Jockey Over How to Fix Insurance Crisis

In his second television campaign ad, State Sen. Rod Smith says that if elected governor, he will fix the state’s homeowners insurance crisis and rein in rate increases, calling them “unacceptable.”

The 30-second spot called “Storm” shows Smith getting out of a helicopter and jogging over to a mock news conference set beside his red, white and blue campaign bus.

“I’ve seen first hand the blue tarps that blanket the roofs of this state. Many Floridians are still recovering from last year’s hurricanes,” Smith says with the sound of chopper blades swooshing in the background.

“It’s bad enough that we’ve had to suffer through those storms but for insurance companies to double or triple rates or worse yet, cancel policies, that’s unacceptable,” he says. “As governor, I’ll push for an independent commission to require insurance companies to open up their books to justify rate increases. We’ve got to hold insurance companies accountable. As governor, I will.”

The new single-issue ad takes a different tack than his first spot released last week which served to simply explain Smith’s background to voters and highlight the main themes of his campaign, touching on teacher salaries, insurance rates and fair elections.

The new ad began airing statewide on Wednesday.

Spiraling homeowners insurance costs will be a key theme across campaigns as many Floridians are being priced out of policies.

Legislators passed a wide-ranging bill on the last day of the session that spared residents millions of dollars in higher premiums that they would have had to pay to bail out Citizens Property Insurance, the state-created insurer of last resort.

Democrats have asked Gov. Jeb Bush to call a special session, claiming the bailout bill won’t do enough to ease the pinch because it gives insurers the ability to more easily raise rates. Supporters say it provides much-needed relief and will encourage companies to continue doing business in Florida.

Several large insurers have announced in recent months they will no longer issue policies and will cease renewals of existing ones after taking huge losses in past hurricane seasons.

U.S. Rep. Jim Davis, Smith’s Democratic gubernatorial challenger in the Sept. 5 primary election, has criticized Smith’s support for legislation that allows wind insurers to avoid paying for damage by claiming that it was caused by water.

“Sen. Smith won’t explain why he’s siding with insurance companies and continuing to support a loophole that makes it easier for insurance companies to avoid paying claims,” Davis campaign spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday.

Davis has not yet run television ads. Earnest said they will begin “very soon.”

Attorney General Charlie Crist, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination, was the first to begin television ads in the race. His spots began airing over Memorial Day weekend. Crist’s opponent, state Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher, began airing ads the weekend after July 4th.

Bush can’t seek re-election because of term limits.