ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — If the property insurance crisis wasn’t doing enough damage to your bank account, car insurance costs are also going up nationwide — and drivers in Florida are bearing the brunt of it.
Like many of us, Melanie Lashus, who moved to Pinellas County from Virginia a couple of years ago, loves her car.
“I can move a refrigerator in that little thing. It's great,” she said of her sedan that made the trek south with her. What wasn’t great was how much she was told it would cost to renew her auto insurance policy.
“It was going to be $1,785 every six months, that's like $3,500 a year — and my car is only worth like $5,000,” Lashus said. “I'm a 45-year-old woman, and I have a perfect driving record. There's really no risk.”
Her quote was up nearly $900 from what she paid last year. The insurance company told her she might save if she bought a new car.
“I love it, I don’t want to get rid of it, I want to drive it till the wheels off, cause it’s a great car,” Lashus said.
In the first six months of 2023, car insurance rates have risen 17% nationwide, according to a new report from Insurify. Experts say more accidents and higher costs for replacement parts are contributing factors. In Florida, premiums have increased by 25% in the same timeframe.
Other studies, like one from Bankrate, shows Florida seeing the biggest premium increases in the country.
“I think the increase in Florida has a lot to do with the storms,” says Michael Sawa, an insurance advisor at Mangrove Financial Group in St. Pete. Sawa says hurricane concerns, a large number of uninsured drivers and theft is all contributing to additional rising costs in the Sunshine State.
So what’s out there for drivers like Melanie, getting sticker shock from their policy renewals?
“Step one, you should call your insurance company,” Sawa said.
Sawa says unlike Florida’s property insurance market, there is a little more room to shop around with auto insurance.
“I think insurance in general what a lot of people do is they set it and forget it. Okay, it's out of sight, out of mind, they just are hurt by the premiums that they pay every month. And then they just accept it and they move on and they don't really take any action,” Sawa said.
“My recommendation is to reach out to an insurance agent, an independent agent in your area, someone who's familiar with your ZIP Code with your county, and just ask them to take a look at your current policy. It doesn't hurt to shop, it's not going to negatively impact you,” he added.
Once you compare policies and see what’s out there, you can consider things like paying in full to save money, tracking your driving habits, raising deductibles or even dropping parts of your coverage if absolutely necessary.
“They're broken down that way you can à la carte coverages, but you just have to be careful of what you're willing to drive around with in Florida,” Sawa said.
Lashus did drop some of her coverage and with it, her premium.
“I went from $1,785 for a six-month policy to $942 for the six-month policy. But now anything that happens to my car is on me to pay for,” she added.
But at least she still can afford to drive it.