On October 15, 2018, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued an Emergency Order related to Hurricane Michael.

Some of the more notable provisions of this emergency order include the following: 

• An extension (in “Included Counties”) until January 7, 2019 of the deadline(s) related to any policy provision, notice, correspondence or law which would impose a time limit on an insured that was to have been performed on or after October 7, 2018. This extension does not, however, relieve policyholders with a Hurricane Michael claim from compliance with obligations to provide information and cooperate in those claims. It also does not apply to policies issued after October 7, 2018. 

• “Between October 7, 2018 and January 7, 2019 no Regulated Entity shall cancel or nonrenew a policy or contract of insurance or issue a notice of cancellation or nonrenewal, covering a person, property or risk in the Included Counties, except at the written request or written concurrence of the policyholder.” 

• “All notices of cancellation issued or mailed ten (10) calendar days preceding October 7, 2018, affecting a policyholder in the Included Counties, shall be withdrawn and re-issued after January 7, 2019.”

• An instruction to insurers to streamline their claim payment processes to advance prompt and efficient claim services. This includes the use of “the latest technological advances to provide prompt and efficient claims service to policyholders.

• Insurers are permitted to pay claims by debit card or other electronic transfers without written approval from the recipient or the recipient’s representative, provided that the insurer verifies the identity of the insured and does not charge a fee. However, if the funds are misdirected, the insurer remains liable for the payment of the claim.

This is only intended to be a summary of some of the provisions of the Emergency Order. Please click here for the full text of the Emergency Order.