Citizens policyholders in Florida who have past-due premiums need to make a payment by Aug. 15 or arrangements to keep their coverage. | National Weather Service/Wikimedia Commons
Policyholders who owe Citizens Property Insurance Corp. for their past-due premiums have less than a month to make a payment to avoid losing their insurance.
Citizens stopped sending customers nonrenewal notices and processing cancellations on March 27 as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Florida’s insurer of last resort will resume cancellations and sending out nonrenewal notices on Aug. 15, Citizens said in its agent updates bulletin from July 9.
To avoid cancellation, direct-billed policyholders must make a payment if they have a past-due premium. If they are unable to make a complete payment, they can ask Citizens for a payment arrangement.
Only policyholders affected by the coronavirus have this option. An Aug. 15 deadline was set to contact the insurer to make these arrangements, the agent updates bulletin reported.
A policyholder with less than three months left in their policy term and new business policyholders are not eligible for payment arrangements.
Citizens’ customers with past-due payments can expect mail and/or email from Citizens detailing payment options and other information. Messages will explain policies will be canceled if payments are not received in time, the agent updates bulletin said.
Agents whose customers are Citizens policyholders also were sent policy lists of those customers that included payment options details. They should use PolicyCenter to cancel any coverage that’s not needed.
Policyholders who need payment arrangements must contact the Citizens Customer Care Center at 866.411.2742 or email at customer.care@citizensfla.com no later than Aug. 14, a Citizens website FAQ reported.
As of Aug. 15, agents no longer will get additional time to submit required documents or alternative documents and signatures for their new business applications, the agent updates bulletin reported.
The Citizens products covered include commercial for non-residential peril, non-residential wind only, residential multiperil and residential only. Personal policies subjected to the late payment rules include residential multiperil and residential wind only, the FAQ said.
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