St. Petersburg's United Property & Casualty Insurance applies to branch into other states

United Property & Casualty Insurance is branching outside Florida's challenging property insurance market.

The St. Petersburg company said Tuesday it is applying to write property and casualty insurance in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and New Jersey.

United has about 96,000 homeowner policies in Florida and just under $200 million in cash and holdings. The company said its expansion into new markets will be aided by its experience in managing its exposure and adopting to changing market conditions in Florida.

"We decided the time was right to explore other markets," United CEO Don Cronin said.

Florida regulators have been supportive of attempts by Florida-based insurers to grow their business and spread risk.