Company tries to reel in State Farm castoffs

Security First Insurance, a Florida homeowners insurance company run by former state Sen. Locke Burt, isn't waiting for regulators to approve State Farm's exodus from Florida's property insurance market.

It's ready to start pulling in State Farm customers now — at least 50,000 of them.

On Monday, Ormond Beach's Security First said it will offer full homeowner and condo coverage, including windstorm, to the first 50,000 State Farm policyholders that contact the insurer. The offer extends to every county and every ZIP code statewide.

The company set up a link on its Web site, www.SecurityFirstFlorida.com/Switch for policyholders to get instant quotes.

State Farm, Florida's biggest private property insurer, is in the midst of seeking regulatory approval to drop 1.2 million policies statewide, including lines for house and condo owners, renters, personal liability, boats, personal articles and business property and liability.

Ed Domansky, a spokesman for the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, said other insurers have expressed interest, but Security First is the first to pledge a specific number of State Farm pickups.

"This is a positive thing that a company has stepped up like this,'' he said, calling State Farm's planned withdrawal a great time for customers to shop around for alternate coverage.

With about 56,000 policyholders currently, Security First would nearly double in size if it lures as many State Farm customers as it envisions.

Security First, and other small Florida-based insurers that add a significant number of policies to their portfolios, are subject to a quarterly review by the state. Among other issues, the review examines the company's solvency and determines if it has adequate reserves to handle any additional risk that it has assumed during the quarter, Domansky said.

Jeff Harrington can be reached at harrington@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8242.