When it comes to homeowner insurance rates, the news still isn't pretty for Florida consumers.

Bob Hartwig, chief economist for the Insurance Information Institute, an industry trade group, said Florida remains the most catastrophe-prone state because of its exposure to hurricanes.

For homeowners, that means insurance rates in Florida are well above the national average and they're likely to go higher.

''At some point, rates will need to reflect that risk'' for both private insurers and Citizens Property Insurance, Hartwig said.

As the state-run insurer and largest in Florida, Citizens' rates are frozen through 2008. But other insurance experts expect Citizens' rates to climb in 2009 to help the insurer replenish its surplus after two years when premiums have been restricted because of the rate freeze.

Besides higher rates, homeowners could face surcharges on all their insurance policies if Citizens or the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund face a shortfall. That could be especially true if a major storm hits South Florida, the state's most densely populated and developed region.

In his presentation to the media Thursday, Hartwig noted that Citizens' exposure to possible losses had more than doubled from the end of 2005 through this year's first quarter. Credit the building boom of the past two years for part of the increase.

Hartwig also noted that Florida homeowners have been big buyers of flood insurance from July 2005 through August. The purchase rate from the national flood insurance program rose 14 percent.

But he finds it distressing that now Florida is showing the highest nonrenewal rate on flood policies -- 32 percent, compared to a national average of 8.6 percent.

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