New Pioneer Institute Scorecard Grades Florida’s Insurance Reforms

Beginning in 2022, Florida enacted sweeping property-insurance reforms intended to improve access to affordable coverage. 

A new data tool from Pioneer tracks Florida’s homeowners insurance market outcomes following recent reform efforts.

Pioneer’s assessment organizes the results around five primary goals: restoring private coverage, reducing excessive litigation, returning Citizens Property Insurance Corporation to its role as an insurer of last resort, improving household affordability, and supporting access to reinsurance.

Key findings from Pioneer’s Reform Scorecard:

• Restore access to private market coverage (B+): New insurer approvals and capital commitments indicate improving market capacity. OIR reported 20 new property and casualty insurers entering Florida’s market by May 2026. The next test is whether those insurers sustain coverage through renewals and severe storms.
• Reduce excessive litigation (B+): Florida’s share of nationwide homeowners insurance suits fell sharply in preliminary 2025 data, but remained much higher than its share of claims. These measures describe reported lawsuit and claim shares, not the percentage of claims that resulted in litigation.
• Return Citizens to its residual role (A): Citizens’ policy count and insured value fell substantially in 2025, bringing it closer to its intended role as an insurer of last resort.
• Affordable coverage for households (C+): Recent premium declines offer relief, but average premiums in the reported homeowners category remained above their second-quarter 2022 level after adjusting for inflation. Changes in coverage and policy mix mean this is not a same-home renewal comparison.
• Bridge the reinsurance shortage (B+): Citizens secured hurricane protection and reported improved reinsurance pricing. Temporary state programs supported reinsurance availability, but their individual contributions still require further evaluation.

The research is part of Pioneer’s Florida initiative, launched last month to advance solutions in housing and education. In its September survey of 500 Florida residents, 80 percent of respondents who were homeowners said insurance costs were a burden.