By David Griffiths, Insurance by Ken Brown / dgriffiths@insbykenbrown.com
The partnership between Amerisure Insurance, FSPA and
Insurance by Ken Brown has spanned multiple decades. Beyond Ken Brown
authoring the first pool pop insurance form, or founding of the scholarship
program, or the annual financial donations to FSPA, there has been a very
unique group dividend in place for many years where members have the
opportunity to earn a return on their insurance premiums.
To be eligible for the dividend, a member of the FSPA must be
insured with Amerisure insurance through Insurance by Ken Brown. The
dividend is not guaranteed, and it is based on the underwriting profitability
of the group as a whole.
For the year 2022 the underwriting profit resulted in a
dividend distribution of $500,000 which will be distributed soon. The
percentage of the dividend to a particular member depends on two factors:
The underwriting
profitability of the business as it stands on its own
The percentage of
premium paid by a member to the whole (more premium paid = larger dividend)
Some of the 2022 individual dividends exceed $10,000!
Over the many years, millions of dollars have been returned
to members through the dividend program, although it’s been a few years since
the group was last eligible. Compromised underwriting profits, caused and
created primarily by an unprecedented volume of lawsuits arising from both auto
accidents and construction defect claims, have taken a toll. We have experienced
claims in both size and scope over the past several years which we have never
seen before.
The increase in litigation we have experienced here in
Florida has been a wrecking ball for the insurance industry and has hugely
impacted all of our rates and premiums. The losses are easier to accept
when there’s a large investment return for the carriers, but that has not been
the case in recent years.
We can all be hopeful that the new Florida 2023 Tort Reform
Law will help with the litigation moving forward. However, that will
undoubtedly take years as there are 100,000+ recently filed lawsuits throughout
the Florida court system right now under the “old” rules and laws.
We’ll enjoy today though, a victory! We are very
excited about this generous distribution; congratulations to all the
participants! We are hopeful for another distribution in 2024!
Checks should be ready for distribution later this summer.