What State Farm Florida Policyholders are Doing Today - Before Their Policy is Cancelled

State Farm Florida announced in January that it is leaving the Florida Property and Casualty Insurance Market. The only items yet to be determined are the details of the withdrawal plan and the timing around when the policy cancellations will begin.

Front and center are the estimated 700,000 State Farm Florida home insurance policies that are expected to be cancelled over a two year period - that's over 29,000 policies that will be cancelled each and every month for two years. No matter how you look at it, this is probably the most significant shock and disruption to the Florida home insurance market in history - and it could not be happening at a worse time.

For starters, many of those State Farm Florida home insurance cancellations will begin at almost the exact same time that Citizens Property Insurance Corporation will begin raising its rates in 2010 as required by state law.

Although dumping on big insurance in Florida has become one of our favorite things to do, here are some little known facts that won't ever make the coverage of State Farm Florida's planned withdrawal from the state:

State Farm Florida policyholders love this company, its customer service, the multiline discounts, and the overall speed at which the company responded to the Florida hurricanes of 2004/2005.

When State Farm Florida policyholders are asked to rate their satisfaction with State Farm on a scale of "1-10" many give them a satisfaction rating of "10" even if their policy is being dropped by the company!

Although State Farm Florida's 47% rate increase was turned down prior to their withdrawal announcement, most of the data that we are collecting says that the annual premiums State Farm Florida policyholders are paying are among the lowest in Florida - due in part to the multi-line discounts for auto, home, and life along with major wind mitigation credits that many customers are receiving.

None of the above changes the fact that State Farm Florida is leaving the Florida home insurance market. Given this reality here are some things that you need to be aware of if you are a customer of State Farm Florida and you want to take action in response to this announcement.

First you need to realize that your State Farm Florida Insurance Agent is not currently allowed to present you with any other Florida home insurance companies for you to consider except for Florida's state run insurance company of last resort - Citizens Property Insurance Corporation - which by its own admission is currently underfunded and overly dependent on borrowing in unfriendly bond markets to pay major hurricane claims.

As you look for companies to replace your State Farm Florida home insurance policy, many of you will be facing increases that range from 70% to over 200% on your annual premium.

Watch for dramatic differences as you move to a new Florida homeowners insurance company - both in terms of the size of the financial surplus it has available to pay your claim and in the headcount it has available for customer service and claims processing. State Farm Florida has more surplus available to pay claims than most of the 40 companies that are still writing new Florida home insurance business combined!

Much of the advice that you've received as a State Farm Florida policyholder has been that you should not take any action now and that you should wait for your Florida home insurance cancellation notice. If you take that advice you could be very sorry in Florida's dysfunctional home insurance market:

For starters, you've heard about many Florida home insurance companies that want to pick up your State Farm Florida home insurance policy. Don't assume that there will be plenty of policies with a new company to go around when your State Farm Florida policy is cancelled.

Some of the companies that initially stated their interest in picking up State Farm Florida policies have tightened up their underwriting guidelines and become more selective about the kind of homes they will accept. Since the State Farm Florida exit announcement, two companies that had expressed interest in taking on some of the policies have had their licenses temporarily suspended.

Many of the State Farm Florida policies being cancelled are homes that were built between 1950 and 1981 - prior to the higher wind standards in the Florida Building Code improvements made in the 1990's - not exactly the kind of homes that Florida home insurance companies are going to be anxious to cover.

Because of the financial shortfalls at both Citizens Property Insurance Corporation and The Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, if there is a major Florida hurricane during the 2009 season, don't expect any companies to be willing to pick up your policy when State Farm Florida cancels it starting in 2010.

Here's what you should do right now if you are a State Farm Florida home insurance policyholder:

Don't wait for your cancellation notice - start shopping for a new company right now!

Contact multiple Florida independent insurance agents who can present you with multiple home insurance companies and try to find a new policy before the 2009 hurricane season starts on June 1st.

Do in depth research on all of the Florida home insurance companies you are considering. If you receive a letter from a company offering to pick up your policy, don't accept their offer until you have thoroughly investigated them.

Don't accept your State Farm Florida home insurance policy being moved into Citizens Property Insurance Corporation unless you have personally done the research and confirmed that there aren't any private Florida home insurance companies who want to cover your home.

Finally, as someone who knows the score in the Florida homeowners insurance market, you know that finding a new company in Florida has never been easy - from the time of Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and continuing through to today.

That's why you have to start shopping for a new policy now. Don't wait until your State Farm Florida policy is cancelled. If you do, you'll have the unpleasant experience of scrambling and competing with 29,000 other State Farm policyholders who will be looking for a new Florida home insurance policy at the exact same time that you are.

It's a game of musical chairs that you have to avoid at all costs!