Patriot Select Reports Successful First Year and Future Plans

Patriot Select Property and Casualty Insurance Company, headquartered in St. Petersburg, reported an underwriting profit of $2 million in its first year of operation. The company attributes its financial success to the assumption of 26,000 policies from the state-operated Citizens Property Insurance Corporation and the acquisition of over 1,600 additional policies from the open market by early March. Patriot highlighted its streamlined operations and rigorous risk management as key factors in achieving these results.

The insurance firm stated that its statutory surplus rose from $29.5 million at its inception to $31.3 million by the year's end. The company also reported a risk-based capital ratio over 14 times the minimum required levels, ensuring robust financial health. This metric, defined by S&P Global Ratings, ensures that insurance companies have adequate capital to sustain operations and safeguard policyholders.

Following approval from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation on April 14, 2025, Patriot began offering homeowners insurance policies in the state. By June, it commenced policy sales through agents, securing an A rating for financial stability from Demotech, a prominent property insurance rating agency.

Marcia Lamb, Patriot's CFO, expressed satisfaction with the company's inaugural profitability, citing it as "validation of our approach" and emphasizing the aim to provide "capital strength and long-term rate predictability" beneficial to Florida homeowners. The company anticipates announcing rate reductions for many policyholders, reflecting its financial health.

Patriot's market entry came during a period when the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation was actively seeking to increase the number of carriers in the state and transition policies from Citizens to private insurers. This shift was part of ongoing efforts to reform Florida’s property insurance market, which has faced challenges due to a limited number of carriers, leading to an increase in policies managed by Citizens, intended as a last-resort insurer.

At the time of Patriot’s approval in May 2025, Citizens had 841,470 active policies, significantly reduced from 1.19 million a year earlier. As of February 28, Citizens reported 336,393 policies in force, indicating a successful transition to more private sector management.