Following up on a story we published April 25, 2012, TCPalm says state-run Citizens Property Insurance in Florida wants to reduce its policyholders by some 687,000, 45 percent. Created by the state to provide insurance for manufactured home owners ineligible for private insurance, Citizens is now the largest insurance company in the state, with 1.5 million policies. In addition to raising rates, it will no longer cover carports and porches, MHProNews.com has learned. The company says a major hurricane this season could wipe out its $6 billion surplus, and it’s artificially low rates discourages private business by making the market uncompetitive. However, some say private insurers will not return, especially not to high-risk coastal areas. One resident, knowing that living in Port St. Lucie in a manufactured home adds to the premium, expects his insurance to rise ten percent when his Citizens policy renews in November.
