TALLAHASSEE - State-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. received approval today to raise rates an average of 10.3 percent for homeowner policies.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty also ordered increases of 9.2 percent for comprehensive mobile home coverage and 9.1 percent for wind-only mobile home policies. McCarty has not yet ruled on requests to raise other rates including commercial policies.

Rates in various territories will go up more or less than the average figures.

Citizens is Florida's largest property insurer with 1.2 million policies, including 758,705 homeowner policies.

The company initially was created to serve as an insurer of last resort mainly in coastal areas that face a higher risk of hurricane damage. It grew, though, as private companies scaled back and increased their rates after sustaining massive losses from a series of storms in 2004 and 2005.

Lawmakers have been struggling to find ways to shift customers out of Citizens and back into the private insurance market. Raising Citizens' rates is part of that strategy.

The new rates will go into effect for high risk accounts on Feb. 1 and for other policies on Jan. 1.

McCarty approved slightly more than Citizens sought in part due to more sinkhole claims, said Office of Insurance Regulation spokeswoman Brittany Benner.