Citizens is transitioning away from the current system used for the clearinghouse program that helps establish eligibility prior to placing or renewing a policy with Citizens. Citizens recommends that agents submit applications and quick quotes directly to PolicyCenter® beginning July 15. Any applications or renewal offers in the current clearinghouse system will no longer be available after the close of business on August 14, 2023.

To comply with the clearinghouse program required by Florida law, agents should use one of the following to determine if the new-business risk is eligible for coverage with a private-market carrier:

• A comparative rater
• Quotes or declination of coverage received directly from private-market carriers

A copy of the rate comparison or private carrier’s quote and/or declination of coverage must be submitted with the application. Use the Quick Quote functionality to create a comparable quote.

As a reminder, agents must establish eligibility before applying for coverage with Citizens. Property owners may be eligible for a Personal Lines policy if they meet one of the following rules:

• No-offer-of-coverage: No authorized insurer is willing to write the risk at its approved rates.
• 20% Rule: The premium for coverage from the authorized insurer is more than 20% greater than the premium for comparable coverage from Citizens.

The named insured and property to be insured must also meet all other applicable underwriting criteria.

For more details, refer to:

• Personal Lines: New Business Eligibility Guide
  • Log in to the Agents website and select FAQs on the top menu.
  • Enter 4517 in the Search field and select the hyperlink in the search results.
  • Select the link under Attachments to open the PDF file.
• New Business Submission Guide

More information related to the renewals will be announced soon.

Citizens is conducting webinars on July 19 and 20 regarding this process change for agents and credentialed agency staff. Register for the webinars via the links and follow the instructions below.

Registration Process for Webinars

• If you haven’t already logged in, enter your Citizens Authentication Gateway (CAG) credentials (the username and password used to log in to PolicyCenter). The Session Details screen will display.
• Select Request. You will receive a confirmation email from LMS@citizensfla.com.
  
  Note: Do not forward the confirmation email because the launch link will break.
• Select Accept to add the session to your calendar.

You can also access the registration via Citizens Learning Center (CLC) on the Agents site:

• Select Training > Live Education. Select the webinar link and follow the above registration steps.
• Choose Citizens Learning Center from the Systems menu at the top of the webpage. Enter the session name in the search box at the top of the CLC homepage and press Enter. The search results will display all available training related to your search criteria.

Note: The webinar does not:

Provide continuing education credits for maintaining a Florida insurance license.
Satisfy Citizens’ biennial agent certification requirement, nor does it satisfy the training required for an initial appointment for Citizens. For more information about appointment, see How to Join Citizens in the About Us section under Business to Business > Agencies on our website.

Additional Resources

The following public services can help consumers and agents identify available private-market coverage:

• Florida Market Assistance Plan (FMAP)
• Florida Office of Insurance Regulation's CHOICES Rate Comparison Tool