TAMPA, Fla. — Insurance rates continue to be a growing problem in the Sunshine State, and there seems to be no fix in the near future.

According to a study by Insurify, a company that does insurance comparisons, says Florida is the third-most expensive in the nation for auto insurance with rates 44% higher than the U.S. average.

For everyday drivers, this could break the budget, but it’s also affecting small businesses that operate on tight margins like Dimitri Kostakis. He runs Complete Tree Service & Trimming Care, a business that he built from the ground up starting in 2000.

“You know, I come here, start something and from nothing, you end up having everything,” Kostakis said.

But he is worried about the future. His expenses are narrowing his margins – especially auto insurance.

“If it keeps going up $400 per truck times 10 trucks, that’s $4,000 a year. And that’s double in two years than what I paid three years ago,” Kostakis said.

Dimitri Kostakis says the rising auto insurance rates are hard on his business. (Spectrum Bay News 9/Jeff Van Sant)

Insurance agents like Angel Cook with Leaders insurance say it's getting harder to find affordable insurance for her clients. Some are forced to remove premiums to bring down the cost.

“How people can afford this is difficult. They are ending up canceling or dropping coverage,” Cook said.

She has tried to help Kostakis find the best solution for his business and says that he has had to cut back on coverage for his trailers to make the insurance affordable.

That is something he really didn’t want to do. Kostakis loves his company but says if the rates continue to climb as they are, he might have to close up shop.

“I know we have to have it. It has to be there," he said of auto insurance. "But I don’t like being taken advantage of."