Tallahassee – In a new TV ad for his Congressional campaign, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is promoting “one person fighting for homeowners.”
In fact, the ad says, “He oversaw the biggest fine in history against the insurance company.” The video included last year’s Tampa Bay Times headlines about state regulators fined Tampa-based estate insurance for how homeowners are treated after Hurricane Ian.
However, Patronis never explicitly came out in favor of that fine when it was issued (and it was not the biggest).
The advertisement, “The Battle for Homeowners” was for the Patronis Race of Parliament District 1 in the West Panhandle. He faces Democrats in the special election on April 1st, and he is expected to win easily.
The Florida Department of Insurance Regulation, not Patronis’s Financial Services Department, has fined her estate insurance. The office found that the company responded to claims slow, slower claims, used inappropriately licensed coordinators, and held poor records.
The governor and Florida Cabinet – with the Chief Financial Officer involved – oversees the Department of Insurance Regulation.
When the fine was announced, the Times/Herald asked Patronis’s office for comment. His spokesman had nothing to say about the legacy’s actions.
Instead, he seemed important that the company was fined in the first place.
“Instead of sending more cash to state funding if there are these types of penalties, CFOs are interested in exploring legislative solutions where money returns to policyholders through surcharge relief.”
(The fine amounts to a $6.66 refund for every 150,000 Heritage customers.)
In 2013, state regulators misrepresented a $1.3 million fine on Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Co. to misrepresent the claim and turn profits into affiliate companies.
The legacy is Florida’s leading political player, and since 2013 it has given Florida politicians and political committees at least $2.3 million. He also sponsored Desantis’ reelection inauguration. The lobbyist, Fred Carlinsky, is reportedly among Patronis’ top advisors.
At the time, Heritage CEO Ernie Garateix responded to the fine in a statement sent by Melissa Stone, longtime campaign manager at Patronis.
“Our message to policyholders is simple. We are committed to excellence and will never stop us from striving for improvement,” Garateix said in a statement sent by Stone.
Stone, who represents Patronis on Tuesday, could not answer why Patronis’ office denied the fine but appeared to support it in his TV ads.
She mentioned the last line of his ad: “I approved this message with Jimmy Patronis.”
