TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – Oct. 26, 2009 – Universal Property and Casualty Insurance has received approval from Florida regulators to raise its average homeowners insurance rates about 14.6 percent statewide.

Parent company Universal Insurance Holdings said rates were effective Thursday for new business and Dec. 11 for renewal business. Universal is the second-largest private insurer in Florida after State Farm.

Officials said that as of the beginning of this year Universal had 461,000 policies, or about 7.5 percent of the market.

The company is among a flurry of insurers that have sought to raise rates.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has said that each request is being considered on its own merits, but in general he sympathized with the rationale for seeking higher rates.

Information from: St. Petersburg Times, http://www.sptimes.com