On behalf of Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) and its member companies, we commend Gov. Rick Scott, CFO Jeff Atwater, Insurance Consumer Advocate Robin Westcott and the Florida Legislature for taking bold steps in 2012 to transform the existing personal injury protection (PIP) system and putting the brakes on accident fraud and abuse. Collectively, they delivered some straightforward solutions to address Florida’s billion-dollar fraud tax and should be recognized for continuing to put Florida’s consumers and businesses first.
 
As Florida continues to lead the charge in attempting to stabilize the high costs of PIP fraud, we look forward to working with its leaders and all stakeholders to lessen the burden on Florida’s consumers.
 
We applaud CFO Atwater on his efforts to fight fraud and get to the root of the problem so that Florida’s drivers can have a more stable and vibrant auto insurance market. From the very beginning, we have warned of the current and long-term damages resulting from the rampant fraud and abuse of the PIP system, and agree with Insurance Consumer Advocate Westcott that it will take time for the new PIP law to take effect – and for Floridians to see the resulting stabilization within the marketplace.
 
With the recent Pinnacle Actuarial Resources, Inc., actuarial study released by the Office of Insurance Regulation, we continue to urge caution and patience to policymakers, regulators and Florida drivers. As with any new comprehensive legislative package, there will be implementation processes and other issues that must be addressed in order for the PIP law to work.
 
With the law not taking full effect until next year, it is excessively difficult to anticipate changes to Florida’s legal or economic environment which will directly influence the impact of the new law. In addition, it is almost impossible to predict the scope of detrimental court challenges to the new PIP law that will be filed by unscrupulous plaintiffs’ attorneys or the extent and manner in which corrupt providers may attempt to game the PIP system. Finally, it is challenging to foresee the overall impact that the PIP law may have on the Bodily Injury and Uninsured Motorists portions of drivers’ auto policies.
 
First and foremost, we must give the new law time to work and put a stop to the bad actors who continue to abuse the PIP system and create additional costs for Florida drivers. Only then will we be better able to assess the marketplace and determine the positive impact of the PIP law that should inure to Florida’s consumers, not the bad actors that have taken us for a ride for far too long.
 
Donovan Brown is state government relations counsel for Property Casualty Insurers Association of America.