You got a packet from Citizens. Here is what it actually means.
Florida law changed how Citizens takeout offers work, and two things catch people out. An offer close enough to your renewal premium ends your eligibility to stay with Citizens. And if you let the deadline pass without registering a choice, Citizens assigns you to whichever company bid lowest — on price alone, not coverage. Once that transfer happens it is final.
Licensed Florida independent agency. We read the packet with you — there is no charge for that.
The eligibility line
If a takeout offer is not more than 20% greater than the Citizens estimated renewal premium, you are no longer eligible to remain with Citizens. The choice becomes which private carrier, not whether to leave.
The cost of ignoring it
Miss the date on your Offer Form and Citizens assigns your policy to the company that offered the lowest premium. Cheapest bid wins automatically, whatever its coverage looks like.
Your window to undo it
There is no longer a 30-day post-assumption period to return to Citizens. Once the assumption occurs the transfer is final. The decision you make before the deadline is the one you keep.
Where do you actually stand?
Nothing is submitted or stored. This just tells you which situation you are in.
Have you received a Depopulation Packet or takeout offer from Citizens?
Yes — I have offers in front of meNot yet, but I have a Citizens policyI am not sure what I receivedCompare the lowest offer against the Citizens estimated renewal premium shown in your packet. The lowest offer is:
Lower, or no more than 20% above CitizensMore than 20% above CitizensI cannot tell from the paperworkBackYour decision is which carrier, not whether to move.
Because the offer is not more than 20% greater than your estimated renewal premium, the eligibility rule applies and Citizens is no longer an option for this policy.
What matters now is which offer you accept. If you do not register a choice by the date on your Offer Form, Citizens assigns you to the lowest bidder automatically. Price is the only thing that default considers — not the hurricane deductible, not roof settlement terms, not carrier financial strength.
Once the assumption happens, it is final. There is no 30-day return window.
Have an agent compare the offersStaying is allowed. It is not automatically right.
Because the offer is more than 20% above your estimated renewal premium, you keep the right to remain with Citizens. You can opt out by the date on your Offer Form.
Before you decline, compare what you would actually be getting. Citizens coverage is not always broader, claims handling differs, and Citizens policyholders are exposed to assessments that private carriers are not. A higher premium sometimes buys materially better terms.
Also check the flood requirement below — it applies to Citizens policies on a phased schedule and the final tier lands 1 January 2027.
Have an agent compare before I declineTwo things are coming toward you.
A takeout offer, probably. Citizens runs depopulation continuously. When your packet arrives it will carry a response deadline, and the 20% rule will decide whether staying is even available to you.
The flood requirement. Citizens phases in a flood insurance mandate by dwelling replacement cost. Check where you land in the table below.
The useful thing to do now is find out how your renewal premium compares to the open market, so that when the packet lands you already know the answer.
Get ahead of it — request a reviewThis is genuinely confusing, and the deadline is real.
Depopulation packets arrive with coverage worksheets, estimated renewal premiums and an Offer Form, and the figures that matter are not always the ones printed largest.
Send us what you received. We will tell you whether the 20% rule removes your eligibility, what each offer actually covers, and what the deadline on your form is. No charge, and no obligation to move your policy to us.
Send the packet to an agentCitizens flood requirement, by replacement cost
Citizens phases in a flood insurance requirement based on the dwelling replacement cost on your policy. Find your band. Three of these dates have already passed.
Condominium unit owners and policies without wind coverage are exempt. Only dwelling coverage is needed to satisfy the requirement — personal contents flood coverage is not mandatory. If you are in one of the passed bands and do not carry flood, that is worth resolving now rather than at renewal.
Have a licensed agent read your packet
Tell us what you are holding. We will work out whether the 20% rule removes your eligibility, what each offer actually covers, and what your real deadline is. If staying put is the better answer, we will tell you that too.
This page explains the Citizens depopulation program in general terms. It is not legal advice, and it does not override your own paperwork — the figures and the deadline printed on your Offer Form control. By America Insurance Group is a licensed Florida independent agency; coverage is never bound through this website.