Page 12 - Stuart Exposure - May '23

Page 12, Stuart Exposure

reAL estAte

Treasure Coast increasing litigation over claims in the state courts, and by dishonest contractors seeking to obtain large settlements
by convincing homeowners to sign away their rights to any
other factors, insurance companies in Florida were facing
Real Estate Report increasing difficulty in getting required reinsurance, among claims under the homeowner’s insurance policy. Fraudulent
other problems. contractors then inflate the claims to secure larger settlements
Property Insurance Rates Are To put a perspective on the “excessive” homeowner claims – without benefit to the victim homeowner. One way attorney
Ridiculously High, But You May Be in Florida, the country’s third largest state in population fees have fueled the explosion of frivolous lawsuits in Florida
Able To Lower Yours By 25 Percent (having just surpassed New York) in 2021 there were in recent years is by incentivizing attorneys to create disputes
100,000 lawsuits in Florida with claims totaling $7.8 billion and inflate claims.
By Jim Weix in damages, whereas the other 49 states had a total of 24,000 My insurance company is offering a 20 percent discount
Why is homeowner’s cases claiming $2.4 billion. In other words, Florida wins the on my $6,000 premium if I agree to mandatory binding
insurance in Florida so national award for fraud. arbitration. My only reservation is that the insurance company
expensive? The answer To try and solve these problems, Governor DeSantis gets to pick the arbitrator. To me, that sounds like asking the
is hurricanes and fraud. convened a special legislative session to comprehensively fox to guard the henhouse.
According to The National deal with the issue. A complex and detailed law was passed Maybe this is the answer to lower rates, but I would
Insurance Crime Bureau, overwhelmingly in both houses of the legislature, and was suggest talking to your attorney before agreeing to it.
“Insurance fraud and abuse signed into law on December 16, 2022, and became effective Feel free to call me if you would like to discuss your
is rampant in the state of on January 1, 2023. options. I can be reached at (772) 341-2941 or jimweix@
Florida, costing homeowners A major part of this bill is that if homeowners agree to jimweix.com.
and insurance carriers mandatory binding arbitration, rather than suing, they can Jim Weix is a broker associate with The Keyes Company.
billions of dollars each year.” get policy discounts on new and renewal policies of up to Jim has 25 years of experience selling real estate full-time.
Due to this, Florida homeowners have been facing rapidly 25 percent in 2023. If you have questions or want the services of an experienced
increasing insurance rates, liquidations, and failures of Another part of the bill deals with the assignment of expert, you can reach Jim at (772) 341-2941 or jimweix@
their carriers, over the last few years. As a result of rapidly benefits or AOB. These AOB contracts have long been abused jimweix.com.

tip of tHe tAiL

Cannabis Exposure medicinal marijuana throughout the country, and the various edibles may be suffering from a multidrug toxicity, which

oral formulations that cannabis is now available in, the rise makes it more difficult for clinicians to diagnose and to treat.
of THC toxicity in canines is alarming. In the past six years, Furthermore, drug testing these pets is often unreliable.
there’s been more than a 400 percent increase in calls about Currently the only rapid testing on the market is for humans
marijuana poisoning to the Pet Poison Helpline, and vets are and recent studies indicate that there are validity concerns
reporting a greater than 60 percent increase in cases they due to metabolite variances between canines and humans.
are seeing come into their practices. Bottom line, the use of medicinal or recreational
The most common symptoms included urinary marijuana is here to stay, as is a dog’s propensity to find
incontinence, disorientation, an abnormal drunken gait, things he should not get into. Just like when you have
lethargy, increased sensitivity to stimuli, a slow heart rate, children in your home, you lock up dangerous things in
and hypothermia. These symptoms usually present within high cabinets, a locked drawer, or an area where wandering
On a typical Wednesday a few weeks ago at Palm City 30 minutes to an hour from time of ingestion and can last hands (or in this case, curious noses) cannot get into.
Animal Medical Center the doctors and staff were all busy anywhere from 24 to 72 hours. Although prognosis with The same principles should apply when you have pets in
seeing appointments and performing scheduled surgeries appropriate treatment is usually excellent, there has been a your home. This will allow you to enjoy the edibles you
when a dog was rushed into the hospital for sudden onset rise in fatalities recently due in large part to the increase in purchased without having to pay an expensive veterinary
neurologic signs and abnormal behavior. During his exam THC concentration now found in marijuana products. Dogs bill on top of it.
he was barely able to stand, had urinary incontinence, don’t know just to eat one-fourth of a cookie or one edible, Established in 1981, Palm City Animal Medical Center
a low heart rate and a fever after being outside playing and since they metabolize medications much differently than is dedicated to providing the best possible care for your
at SandyPaws just prior to the onset of signs. We began humans do, they feel the effects of THC to a much greater pets. With focuses on compassionate care in surgery,
treating him for shock in an attempt to stabilize him while degree. physical therapy and rehabilitation, preventative medicine,
getting to the bottom of his diagnosis. While performing An additional complication is that many of today’s extensive diagnostics, and emergency service, Palm City
tests we placed him in an ICU run with IV fluids and strict edibles come packaged in chocolate and fruit flavors, which Animal Medical Center combines exceptional medical
monitoring where he continued to decline, becoming more are highly attractive treats to pets and also can be highly care with a caring philosophy for pets and their owners.
lethargic and less responsive despite treatment. It was during toxic. Chocolate, grapes, raisins, and xylitol are just a few For more information, call (772) 283-0920, visit www.
this time he also began vomiting, at first large amounts of of the ingredients being used that cause significant health palmcityanimalmedicalcenter.com or find us on Facebook
water but eventually he vomited up what appeared to be a issues in our pets. A pet who has gotten into these types of at www.facebook.com/PalmCityAnimalClinic.
plastic ziplock bag. Upon inspecting this bag we discovered
the cause of his symptoms was cannabis ingestion. The
ziplock bag was punctured and open, but multiple edibles
were found still inside the bag and more were found in his
vomit. Now knowing that this doodle was suffering from
the effects of THC, we were able to treat him appropriately
with IVs and supportive care and he ultimately made a full,
albeit expensive, recovery.
You would think this case was an uncommon one since
we don’t live in a major metropolitan area. Unfortunately,
this is far from the truth and treating stoned dogs is now
a fairly common occurrence. With the increasing use of

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