Heritage Insurance CEO says Tampa Bay homeowners could soon see lower rates

Heritage Insurance has filed a second rate reduction with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, a move CEO Ernie Garateix says should lower premiums for homeowners in the Tampa Bay and Miami areas once it is approved.Garateix spoke to Tampa Bay 28 anchor Nadeen Yanes at the end of Hispanic Heritage Month sharing his story as Cuban American from Florida. He said he got into the insurance industry after it helped his own family escape Cuba."So my mom actually worked for Travelers Insurance in Cuba. Travelers actually helped her leave the country in 1959 when things were going not so well," Garateix said.WATCH: Heritage Insurance CEO says Tampa Bay homeowners could soon see lower rates Heritage Insurance CEO says Tampa Bay homeowners could soon see lower ratesHis career eventually brought him to Heritage Insurance, where he has served as CEO since 2020. Right about the time homeowners across the state started seeing their insurance premiums begin to rise.In recent years, Heritage In