June 30--Fort Lauderdale-based Universal Insurance Holdings has expanded into Alabama and Minnesota and now writes policies in 13 states.
The publicly traded company operates Universal Property and Casualty, which has supplanted state-run Citizens Property Insurance Corp. as the state's largest insurer. Through March 31, Universal had 555,866 commercial and residential policies in Florida, compared with 476,278 at Citizens.
Universal wrote its first policy in Alabama this month after securing approval by the state's Department of Insurance, according to a news release. On June 16, Universal announced that it had written its first policy in Minnesota.
The company this week also announced the Alabama launch of Universal Direct, its direct-to-consumer online platform. The website enables consumers to directly purchase, pay for and bind property insurance online without the need to communicate with intermediaries. Universal Direct also is available in Pennsylvania and Minnesota. The company plans to extend the site to Florida later this year, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The company also operates in North Carolina, South Carolina, Hawaii, Georgia, Massachusetts, Maryland, Delaware, Indiana and Michigan, although just 16 percent of its insured value came from outside Florida at the end of 2015, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Subsidiary American Platinum Property and Casualty writes multi-peril homeowners insurance on Florida homes valued at more than $1 million.
The company's revenues increased from $225.9 million in 2011 to $546.5 million in 2015, while net income grew from $20.1 million to $106.50 over the same period. Its share price plummeted on the New York Stock Exchange on Nov. 17, opening at $30.06 and closing at $20.69, after a hedge fund manager targeted the company in a short pitch at the Robin Hood Investors Conference in New York. Universal's share price has yet to fully recover, closing at $18.02 on Wednesday.
In Florida, Universal is seeking a statewide average rate increase of 5 percent for its multi-peril homeowner policies. Most tri-county territories would see average increases of 8.1 percent.
Numerous insurers are seeking increases in South Florida as losses mount from non-weather-related water damage claims and resulting lawsuits. Publicly owned Citizens, the so-called "insurer of last resort," is seeking average increases of 8.9 percent to 9.1 percent in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties.
rhurtibise@sun-sentinel.com, 954-356-4071
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