After more than 40 years, Florida's no-fault car insurance system would finish by 2019 under a bill filed by state Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg.
"The system is broken and rife with fraud and abuse," Brandes told the Palm Beach Post. "There is no quantity of tweaking that can fix PIP. Florida can do better, and this repeal will force policymakers to address this significant issue impacting every motorist in our state."
Florida drivers pay the fourth highest premiums in the country.
The Senator’s bill, SB 1112, is intended to repeal the law requiring drivers to get Personal Injury Protection coverage regardless of who's responsible for an accident. Although the current process was designed to cut down on litigation and get payments to claimants quickly, it's been subject to a vast number of lawsuits of its own, fraud and high premiums for coverage that provide comparatively little despite a number of reform efforts.
Other kill- PIP attempts have failed as interest groups including hospitals and insurers have lobbied hard to keep the system in place, and Scott has said he wants to preserve his legacy of PIP and to give a chance for amendments and reforms to help fix the system. But Brandes is an important player driving the program on flood insurance and other problems, and his sponsorship of the bill could be a crucial factor.
Scott "will review any legislation that makes it to his desk," a spokeswoman told reporters.
The Florida Hospitals Association is not keen to see the back of PIP, however
"While more Floridians have health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act, there are almost 3 million people in Florida who remain uninsured," the Florida Hospital Association said in a statement. "PIP functions as the sole type of coverage for uninsured people who seek emergency care following a car accident. If PIP is eliminated, coverage for uninsured motorists should be dealt with through options such as medical payment coverages, which provide a restricted form of insurance coverage."
But many motorists say as more people are covered by national health law, they see a massive net win by removing mandatory PIP coverage that may account for 20 percent or more of a consumer's total bill. Colorado drivers conserved 35 percent on their entire statements after losing a no-fault system, the Post reported.
