HCI Group-sponsored Tailrow assumes nearly 14,000 policies from Citizens

By Mia MacGregor

Feb 25 - (The Insurer) - HCI Group-sponsored reciprocal exchange Tailrow Insurance Exchange has officially begun operations after assuming nearly 14,000 policies from Florida's state-backed carrier Citizens Property Insurance Corporation.

The assumed policies represent approximately $35 million of in-force premium, HCI said in a statement on Monday.

Tailrow was approved to take on up to 20,000 policies from Citizens. It decided to make around 18,000 offers to Citizens policyholders, and of those it achieved a 76% acceptance rate. The assumption became effective on February 18, 2025, according to HCI.

HCI received approval from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation to launch Tailrow in 2023, shortly after the state enacted wide-reaching reforms designed to improve its insurance market.

“We are excited to complete this assumption and officially commence operations at Tailrow," said Paresh Patel, HCI's chairman and CEO.

"The technology we’ve built and our management expertise enabled us to identify attractive policies at Citizens for assumption and achieve a high adoption rate by policyholders," Patel added.

A reciprocal insurer has similarities to a mutual. It is an unincorporated aggregation of at least 25 policyholders, with the reciprocal exchange managed by an attorney-in-fact (AIF).

Reciprocals are essentially owned by their policyholders, but their operations, such as underwriting, claims and management services, are provided by an AIF for a pre-agreed fee.