Florida lawmakers are looking to limit residents' ability to sue insurance companies in an effort to decrease costs, the Miami Herald reported March 14.
Florida residents pay the highest auto and homeowners insurance rates in the nation. State law already limits litigation against property insurers, and now Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republicans are pursuing legislation that would expand those limits to other payers, including the health sector, according to the report.
One proposed change includes getting rid of the one-way attorney fee statute, which requires insurers to pay a member's legal fees if the member successfully sues for a breach of contract. Other key changes would cap how much a member could collect from a successful lawsuit and how much a member in an accident could receive for medical bills.
The changes would also make it more difficult for attorneys to take cases against payers, according to the Herald.
The National Federation of Independent Business and the Florida Chamber of Commerce are in favor of the legislation, citing the state's high number of lawsuits and other states that have done similar. Those that have publicly opposed the legislation include trial lawyers, bikers, physicians and accident victims.
According to the report, small businesses and Republican lawmakers are more split, arguing that the proposals wouldn't actually reduce insurance rates. They cited homeowners' rates continuing to increase, despite existing state legislation that makes it difficult to sue property insurers.