My homeowner’s insurance was $5,600. It skyrocketed to $12,500 | Letters

My homeowner’s insurance went up nearly $7,000

Amid Florida’s property insurance crisis, Citizens sees its policies swell by 50% in 2022 | Jan. 9

My homeowner’s insurance renewal just jumped from $5,600 to $12,500 per year. It’s not a misprint. No claims, no changes, I don’t live on the water, just a more than doubling of my rate in one year. Their reasoning? Two significant hurricanes in 2022 and a $40,000 increase in rebuilding costs.

I was told that if I raised all my deductibles to dangerous levels, I could get it down to “only” $7,600, still $2,000 more per year than my current rate of $5,500, which did not require dangerous deductibles. I called the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation and received only a sympathetic ear. The state has had decades to solve this and, in my view, nothing significant has happened other than “we’re working on it” responses.

How about a suggestion from a homeowner to at least get the ball rolling? Why not establish a “hurricane insurance tax,” which can be added to all purchases/sales? The money could be used to subsidize/reinsure Citizen’s Property Insurance Corp. or privately owned insurance companies in the event of catastrophic events like Hurricane Ian. If the insurance companies’ losses are capped and related legislation is passed, their rates would accordingly drop with competition.

Frank Monteleone, Hudson

When less is more

Heavy-handedness in the free state of Florida | Editorial, Jan. 20

I thought Republicans scream for less government involvement in business.

Darryl David, St. Petersburg

He was wrong but he wins?

Judge says DeSantis was wrong, but declines to restore Andrew Warren to office | Jan. 20

The judge’s ruling that Gov. Ron DeSantis broke the law in firing Andrew Warren as Hillsborough state attorney but that Warren cannot be reinstated seems idiotic to me. What’s the point of having laws if they can be broken without consequence?

Frank T. Mason, Odessa

A right to privacy

Harris to push abortion fight in Florida on Roe anniversary | Jan. 18

Does anyone, other than a significant other, have any right to know if a woman is pregnant? Of course not because it violates her right to privacy. So does anyone have the right to know if she has had an abortion? Same answer. It is none of my business or anyone else’s if she is pregnant or if she has an abortion. I am not pro-abortion, but I am in favor of rights to privacy.

Dave Hinz, Clearwater

Careless is worse

Trump, Biden classified documents cases differ in key ways. Here’s how. | Jan. 14

I see a lot of comparison of the situations between Donald Trump and Joe Biden regarding the handling of classified documents. Many say that the Trump situation is worse because he took the documents deliberately, while Biden appears to have taken them inadvertently. I think both are equally bad. Yes, Trump should not have knowingly taken classified documents and should have given them back right away once asked. However, Biden appears to have just been careless. Is carelessness better? I think not. Not knowing you have classified documents and not treating them as such is just as bad as knowingly having them and limiting access. I can’t determine which is worse.

David Hagan, Tampa

A green Greenland.

Parts of Greenland hotter than at any time in past millennium | Jan. 19

I enjoyed this article on Greenland, especially when I compared it to a piece previously published under the headline “Oldest DNA reveals life in Greenland 2M years ago.” That article noted that 2 million years ago, the temperature in Greenland was 20 to 34 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than today. The result was a land where flora and fauna flourished. This sounds like good news for Greenland and for all of us. It’s also a much needed reminder that we live on a planet and not in a snow globe.

Rob Bennett, Valrico

The bill comes due

As US nears debt limit, political frictions raising alarms | Jan. 19

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy claims that refusing to raise the debt limit is like cutting up your child’s credit card. Really, I think it is more like quitting your job to go on a drunken spree with your rich buddies, then abandoning your wife and kids when the bill comes due.

Gregg Niemi, Tampa