Tampa insurance firm picks up Citizens policies worth $200M

HCI Group, a Tampa-based holding company, recently acquired 42,000 policies from Citizens Property Insurance through two of its subsidiaries.

Homeowners Choice was approved for 25,000 policies and assumed approximately 22,000 policies — an 88% acceptance rate. TypTap Insurance Company was approved for 25,000 policies and assumed approximately 20,000 policies — an 80% acceptance rate. The policies assumed represent approximately $200 million of in-force premium, according to a statement.

The assumption of policies by both insurance subsidiaries is effective as of Oct. 22.

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“We successfully navigated a highly competitive Citizens’ depopulation process and exceeded our fourth quarter new business goal through the October assumption alone,” says Paresh Patel, HCI’s chairman and CEO in a statement. “Our technology, which enables us to select policies that best fit our underwriting and profitability criteria, combined with our strong rate of policyholder adoption, allows us to forgo additional assumptions for the balance of the year.”

HCI Group has subsidiaries operating in homeowners insurance, information technology services, real estate, and reinsurance sectors.

The assumption is part of a larger move by the state, a “depopulation” program where multiple private carriers are approved to assume 400,000 of Citizens’ current 1.2 million policies to offset some of the financial burden faced by the state-run entity.