Update 03.06.23: The Existing Damage Disclaimer form has been added to the Risks with Existing Unrepaired Damage/Open or Closed Ian Claims section.

United Property & Casualty Insurance (UPC) has been ordered into liquidation by the Second Judicial Circuit Court in Leon County, Florida, as of February 27, 2023. The Florida Department of Financial Services (DFS) is appointed as Receiver of UPC, and all policies are being cancelled effective 12:01 a.m. on March 29, 2023. For more information, see the consent order. This will cancel approximately 56,000 Personal Lines Policyholders.

Get Appointed with Citizens

If you or agents in your office are not appointed with Citizens and want to continue to service UPC customers who cannot find coverage elsewhere, the agency principal should visit the Agencies section on the Business to Business page on the Citizens website.

Notes

• DFS issued a Notice to Agent or Broker regarding the liquidation, which informs agents of their responsibilities to provide written notice to UPC policyholders of the DFS receivership and of the cancellation date of their UPC policy effective March 29, 2023.
• The Florida Insurance Guaranty Association (FIGA) will mail unearned premium refunds to affected policyholders within 45 to 60 days of the liquidation date.

After an agent exhausts all other avenues for coverage, Citizens is ready to assist with securing coverage for these risks that meet Citizens’ eligibility guidelines. Citizens encourages agents to seek coverage from an authorized insurer that meet the 20% eligibility rule. If the customer received an offer of coverage from Slide Insurance and it is within the 20% eligibility rule, the risk is not eligible for Citizens.

The agent should submit documents for proof of prior insurance with UPC. A current or prior Declarations page, billing invoice, any current notice, etc., that proves the customer was a prior UPC policyholder may be submitted.

To support the short time needed to provide coverage for these risks, Citizens has eased some underwriting requirements. Citizens will also extend the payment due date from 21 to 60 days for direct bill new business from UPC effective March 29, 2023, to allow customers time to receive any refunds from FIGA. More information is below and will be discussed in the webinar.

Deferral for Required Documents for New-Business Submissions

Agents should submit required documents for all new-business submissions, including proof of repair for any fully repaired damage.

Agents can defer required documents for new-business submissions for:

• Photos
• 4-Point inspection form (includes all photos for new business except existing damage)
• Roof condition documentation such as permits
• Current Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form (OIR-B1-1802)

Wind Loss Mitigation (WLM): Agents should apply the discount based on the current form available. A Declarations page confirming the WLM features can be submitted.&

Agents must submit all required documents (including inspections) no later than 60 days after the Citizens policy effective date to avoid cancellation.

Submit the Personal Lines: Document Deferral Form for Expedited Submission in lieu of the required documents in PolicyCenter®. This deferral program ends on May 28, 2023.

As reminders:

• Citizens has statutory maximums on coverage limits: Any risk in any county (except Miami-Dade or Monroe counties) that has a dwelling replacement cost of $700,000 or more, or a single condominium unit that has a combined dwelling and content replacement cost of $700,000 or more, is not eligible for coverage with Citizens. In Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, any risk that has a dwelling replacement cost of $1 million or more or a single condominium unit that has a combined dwelling and content replacement cost of $1 million or more is not eligible for coverage with Citizens.
• New-business risks cannot be submitted with a named insured or an additional named insured in the name of a trust. Refer to the agent job aids Writing a Residence Held in Trust and Residence Held in Trust: New Rules, Forms and System Changes for more information.

Risks with Existing Unrepaired Damage/Open or Closed Ian Claims

These risks should be submitted directly to PolicyCenter. When open claims and/or existing unrepaired damage is present, an unbound submission for approval should include the following documentation:

• Photos of the existing damage
• Document(s) reflecting when the repairs will be completed
• Existing damage written disclaimer from the applicant

To submit a risk with existing damage unbound, indicate existing damage in PolicyCenter as shown below.

Figure 1: PolicyCenter Eligibility Questions screen indicating existing damage

Note: Loss History reports will automatically be pulled on all submissions. Agents should carefully review any previous losses that may require proof of repair.

Entering the Prior Carrier in PolicyCenter

When submitting a new-business risk into PolicyCenter, agents must follow the steps below to select the appropriate prior-carrier information:

• On the Policy Info screen enter information regarding the prior policies.
• Click in the Carrier Name field to access the search feature.
  Results: The External Carriers search page displays.
• Enter the first few characters of the carrier’s name and select Search.
  Results: The search results display.
• In the search results, select the Carrier ID, 105012 and Carrier Name United Property & Casualty Insurance Company.
  Results: The Policy Info screen displays.
• Complete the remaining fields: Policy Number, Expiration Date and Cancel or Non-Renewal Reason.

Figure 2: PolicyCenter External Carriers screen with UPC’s Carrier ID and Name

Citizens' Live Webinars

Register for free Citizens-sponsored Zoom webinars by using the links below or logging in to Citizens Learning Center (CLC).

Resources

For more details, log in to the Agents site and select:

• Training > Citizens Essentials for online webinar recordings to help you navigate the new-business submission process and service your customers
• Training > Personal Job Aids to access:
  • Creating a Quick Quote
  • New-Business Submission Guide
  • Automated Loss History Data and Acceptable Proof of Repair Guide
  • Uploading and Linking Documents
  • Home Condition Requirements
  • Mobile Home Condition Requirements
  • Required Document Guides (by policy form on the right-hand side)
• FAQs on the top menu. Enter +document +deferral in the Search field.

You can select Training > Personal Job Aids or Commercial Job Aids on the Agents site to access job aids, including:

• Citizens Learning Center Agent Quick Start Guide
• Citizens Learning Center Mobile Quick Start Guide

If you have any questions or concerns, contact Citizens’ Customer Care Center weekdays, 8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET, 888.685.1555.