Florida suspends Allstate from writing new policies
Florida state insurance commissioner Kevin McCarty has suspended Allstate Insurance from writing new auto policies in the Sunshine State until it complies with a subpoena issued by the Office of Insurance Regulation.
The office subpoenaed documents and information about the way Allstate sets its rates, but officials of the insurance company told the Miami Herald that the requests were "breathtakingly broad," and that some of the areas involved trade secrets.
McCarty, on the other hand, said that Allstate was blatantly disregarding the subpoenas, and that he had "little choice" but to suspend their authority to write new policies in his state.
According to the Herald, Flordia's Governor, Charlie Crist, was surprised to learn that Allstate had been fined in Missouri for a similar disregard of a court order to provide documents. According to the Governor, Allstate's corporate ethic is "horrific," and they have "…completely lost any trust or confidence."
The suspension order applies to Allstate Indemnity Co., Allstate Insurance Co., and Allstate Property and Casualty Co., as well as new commercial auto insurance policies, but existing policies are not affected.
