Hurricane Irma: Insurance Claims Come Into Focus As Clean-Up Begins

Naples Daily News (FL)

Sept. 14--It's too late for Hurricane Irma.

However, Tim Shaw, president of Tim Shaw Insurance-Acentria in Fort Myers, is selling a lot of flood insurance these days.

He wishes more of his customers would have heeded his warnings before the hurricane. His company encourages all property owners in Florida to buy flood insurance and any of his clients who don't want it have to sign a form rejecting it.

Those who didn't have flood insurance and had flood damage from Irma, he said, are probably "out of luck" in getting any financial help to cover their losses.

Standard homeowners and renters insurance policies often cover wind damage, but not flooding from a hurricane.

While the Federal Emergency Management Agency can offer grants to victims, it says the amount is "often much less than what is needed to recover."

FEMA has approved individual assistance for 21 counties including Lee and Collier. For more information visit disasterassistance.gov or fema.gov.

Lee County has 128,690 active National Flood Insurance Program policies. Collier County has 96,868, according to FEMA, which manages the program.

Census data shows Lee had more than 385,000 and Collier had greater than 210,000 housing units as of July 1, 2016.

As of Monday the National Flood Insurance Program had $1.5 billion on hand to pay claims and $5.8 billion in borrowing authority, which it will have to tap to help pay claims.

"Congress and FEMA have never allowed a valid flood claim to go unpaid," said Mark Peterson, an external affairs officer for FEMA, in an email.

The program offers coverage of up to $250,000 for structural damage and $100,000 for contents.

To file a flood insurance claim under the NFIP, contact your insurance agent immediately or call 800-621-FEMA (3362).

FEMA has directed the NFIP and its partner insurance companies to start issuing advance payments to help policyholders affected by Hurricane Irma flooding begin their recovery, Peterson said.

Residents should start surveying damages to their property and their belongings from Irma as soon as possible if they haven't already. Often, insurers handle claims on a first-come, first-served basis.

Checks may flow quicker than some may expect, as insurance agencies have geared up for the claims.

"In some cases people are going to get checks today," Shaw said. "Most insurance companies want to pay their claims and pay them as quick as possible. It's expensive for them to hire adjusters and to keep them going back and forth."

Ron Jackson, a regional vice president for the Southeast for the American Insurance Association, said Irma is one of the first hurricanes in Florida for which the insurance industry can use drones to inspect areas that adjusters can't visit right away, which could help speed up payments.

Property owners can file claims based on reports by others who have seen the damage in their area if they can't get to their homes or business themselves, he said.

Once a report is made, Jackson suggests that policy holders continue to reach out to their insurers if they are not hearing from an adjuster.

According to AccuWeather, the damages of Irma will be roughly $100 billion, while Harvey's was estimated at $190 billion.

Here are a few tips for making claims:

* Document your losses with pictures and video.

* Keep records of anything you spend, which could include meals and hotel stays if you can't return home right away.

* Don't throw away damaged items before showing them to your adjuster. If that's not possible, take pictures of them.

The Hartford has set up a mobile response unit for its customers at the parking lot of the Home Depot at 1651 S. Airport-Pulling Road in Naples, which is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. It's a place where customers can meet with claims adjusters, power up devices and phone or e-mail loved ones.

In most cases the hurricane deductible is 2 percent of the amount of insurance you carry on your house. If your home is insured for $300,000 that means you have to pay $6,000 out of your pocket before you receive any money from insurance. Screened enclosures aren't always included and can require separate coverage, with their own deductibles.

Any Floridian affected by Irma who needs assistance with insurance-related issues

can call the Insurance Consumer Helpline at 877-693-5236. Other resources can be found at myfloridacfo.com.

A free smartphone app developed by the National Association of

Insurance Commissioners called "MyHome Scr.APP.book" can help with photo documentation.

Enservio -- a Solera-owned company and provider of contents claim management software, inventory and valuation services and payments solutions for property insurers -- has launched IrmaContents.com, a free contents inventory creation tool to assist residents with inventorying their lost or damaged property.

Irma victims should also be aware that the comprehensive portion of their auto insurance usually covers flooding and other storm-related damage.

Also, trip insurance could kick in for policyholders who had to change their travel plans because of the storm.

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