Florida lets surplus-lines insurers drag policyholders to New York
Archive story from the 2026-06-08 edition. This is the reporting as filed; source publication and event dates may differ. Check the dated storyline for subsequent developments.
The policyholder bar is flagging surplus-lines carriers using forum-selection clauses to force Florida policyholders to litigate claims in New York: far from the loss, the property, and the contractor.
Why it matters
As more risk shifts to surplus lines (the carriers picking up what admitted carriers won't write), these venue clauses make it harder and costlier to fight an underpaid claim, which weakens your supplement leverage downstream.
Our assessment
Surplus lines gets sold as more options for hard-to-place homes, and technically that is true. The cost sits in the fine print: venue clauses, sublimits and appraisal restrictions that decide how hard an underpayment will be to fight, years before the loss happens. Ask for the full policy at intake on any non-admitted carrier, and flag the venue clause to the homeowner in writing.
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Legal Medium confidence at publication
How we got here
Storyline: claims suppression 8 stories so far
- 1 earlier story on this storyline
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- Carriers cry fraud; the data says undervaluation
- Florida court: a dead body can be covered property damage
- The Portofino appraisal fight heads to appeal
- Florida lets surplus-lines insurers drag policyholders to New York You are here
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Terms in this story: Supplement