Two Years After Hurricane Harvey, Flood Insurance Payouts Near $9B

Aug. 22– Louisiana Insurance Commissioner James Donelon issued a cease and desist order against State Farm in a disagreement over hurricane deductibles before Hurricane Barry. The cease and desist order applies to any policyholder of State Farm who is facing the same situation and disallows the company to collect the larger deductible.

–Last year, more than half of U.S. residents did not use all of their vacation days, equating to 768 million unused days, according to research from the U.S. Travel Association. “Many travelers are unaware that travel insurance can offer protection if your employer or work situation prohibits you from taking a pre-planned trip,” says Squaremouth spokeswoman Jenna…

Verisk, a data analytics provider, issued the following news release:. There are 62 million residential locations in the United States that are at moderate to extreme flood risk, according to a Verisk analysis released today. Verisk is a leading data analytics provider.

Aug. 20– After two disastrous fire seasons, California officials have been besieged by homeowners in fire-prone areas complaining that their insurance premiums are skyrocketing or their plans are suddenly being dropped. In areas affected by the 2015 and 2017 fires, homeowners fared even worse: Non-renewals jumped by almost 10 percent last year in those zip…

Aug. 20– A year after historic rains wreaked havoc on Dane County, some residents continue to feel the impact from high groundwater that’s being blamed for millions of dollars of additional damage. Last year was the second-wettest year in Madison out of 149 years of modern record keeping, according to the National Weather Service. John Reimer, assistant director…

Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis hosted a Hurricane Michael Insurance Village this past Friday and Saturday at Gulf Coast State College in Panama City. CFO Jimmy Patronis said, “Over the weekend, my Division of Consumer Services hosted a Hurricane Michael Insurance Village in Panama City that brought together 28 insurance companies to assist…

–InsureMyTrip, a Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador for the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is alerting travelers that peak hurricane season is now underway. Travelers seeking travel insurance should be aware that once a storm starts forming it is considered a foreseeable event, and coverage will no longer be…

Insure.com, a provider of information on life insurance, home insurance, health insurance and auto insurance, issued the following news release:. Graduated Driver Licensing Laws are meant to save lives and help protect young drivers by allowing them to safely gain driving experience before obtaining full driving privileges. Research shows they work when…

Experts say it’s only a matter of time before a shift in a major fault line off the Oregon coast causes a massive earthquake that generates a tsunami as much as seven stories tall. Even as work on Oregon State University’s Marine Studies Building was underway in Newport, the Legislature went a step further and repealed a ban on construction of new “critical…

–Drunk driving fatalities are on a downward trend across the county. Forty-three states nationwide saw a decrease in drunk driving fatalities from 2000 to 2017, according to a new QuoteWizard ® report. Drunk driving fatalities nationwide decreased by 18% overall from 2000 to 2017 Uber’s ridership trends show that demand for rides peak around times when…

PEMCO Mutual Insurance recently announced Harris Clarke, vice president of operations, will expand his role to include oversight of the company’ s claims department, while he hands off responsibility for the underwriting and product departments to newly promoted executive, Dawn Lee. “Harris’ demonstrated ability to successfully lead high-performance…

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority announced the restructuring of more than 200 delinquent loans–totaling approximately $571 million in principal–owed to Puerto Rico’s clean water and drinking water State Revolving Fund programs. “EPA is pleased that Puerto Rico’s SRFs are back on track and able to…

—After devastating flooding this year, Iowa put $15 million into a special fund to help local governments recover and guard against future floods. Missouri allotted more money to fight rising waters, including $2 million to help buy a moveable floodwall for a historic Mississippi River town that’s faced flooding in all but one of the past 20 years.

_ Kemper Corp. on Monday reported second-quarter profit of $122.1 million. The Chicago- based company said it had profit of $1.84 per share. Access a Zacks stock report on KMPR at https://www.zacks.com/ap/KMPR.

Aug. 4– BEARDSTOWN– For Beardstown farmer Jack Hardwick, the long-term flooding of many of his fields near Beardstown, Chandlerville and Meredosia has made this year’s planting season a hard one. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency pays claims to farmers who are prevented from planting their land for any of several reasons, including…

Among other things, the bill calls on pet insurance policyholders to discuss grievances with their provider before filing a complaint with the California Department of Insurance. The San Diego Union-Tribune last month reported that Lara accepted and then returned thousands of dollars in campaign donations from a Texas homemaker who shares a home address…

TransUnion, a risk information provider, issued the following news release:. The newly released Auto Insurance Shopping Index from TransUnion revealed that 21.7% of consumers were shopping for personal auto insurance in 2018, up from 20% the previous year. Carriers have an opportunity to increase their business while consumers may secure even better rates, “…

Gov. Gavin Newsom is defending California’s wildfire prevention efforts while criticizing the federal government for not doing enough. He jabbed Wednesday at Republican President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticized California’s Democratic leaders for poor forest management. Newsom says 33 of 35 forest-thinning projects are on pace for completion by year’s end. They are designed to slow the spread of wildfires near more than 200 communities in fire-prone areas.

Jul. 30– Weary of seemingly never-ending rate hikes, customers of state-owned Citizens Property Insurance Corp. in Broward and Palm Beach counties won’t be getting any relief soon. On Monday, the state Office of Insurance Regulation approved an average 9.6 percent rate hike for the company’s 29,212 multiperil residential policyholders in Broward,…

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance, Bloomington, Illinois, has been assigned a patent developed by Gregory L. Hayward, Bloomington, Illinois, for “determining abnormal traffic conditions from a broadcast of telematics data originating from another vehicle.” The full-text of the patent can be found at http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the following news release:. Missourians who have registered with FEMA may be eligible for reimbursement if they paid out-of-pocket expenses for temporary lodging because of damage to their primary residences from recent flooding, severe storms and tornadoes.

North Carolina hurricane survivors are frustrated with the slow spending of federal long-term housing recovery funds. A May report showed that federal housing funds for Hurricane Matthew victims were delayed due to administrative mistakes and inexperience. Some displaced Florence survivors are working on their homes themselves with the help of volunteer organizations. But, those repairs are not complete fixes to the home, meaning that homes could be more vulnerable in future storms.

Jul. 23– When an elderly woman’s insurance company wouldn’t help her fix her home that a wild alligator damaged, a police officer in her city decided to come to the rescue. Clearwater police officer Brad Allen created a GoFundMe earlier this week to raise $1,500 for 77- year-old Mary Wischhusen after an 11- foot gator broke into her home. The effort has so far raised…

Jul. 23– Sudden downpours caused flash floods across the city Monday night, turning streets in Brooklyn and Staten Island into rivers and blocking traffic entirely on the Long Island Expressway. Videos and photos showed torrents of rainwater rushing down streets in Williamsburg, flooding cars on 4th Ave. and Carroll St., and turning Wallabout St. at Throop Ave….

Reporting published in the San Diego Union Tribune Saturday reveals that California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara intervened on the side of a workers’ compensation insurer on at least four separate occasions after receiving contributions from insurance executives and their wives with connections to the company. Jeff McDonald’s report in the San…

Jul. 20– Tornado survivors without the means to rebuild on their own and short on insurance or FEMA money should stay patient, say those working on long-term recovery efforts. And that funnel begins with registering with FEMA, said Adam Blake, vice president of housing for County Corp.. As of Thursday, 5,180 individuals or households had registered with FEMA from…

CoreLogic ®, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today announced residential and commercial flood and wind loss estimates for Hurricane Barry. According to this data analysis, flood loss for residential and commercial properties in Louisiana is estimated to be between $200 million and $400 million…

Jul. 16– Legislation introduced Tuesday in Washington could help prevent horrific highway crashes by requiring big trucks to have automatic braking systems, its backers say. Hank Johnson, D- Georgia, new commercial trucks would be required to have the systems that alert drivers when they are approaching a vehicle, and then automatically slow down the truck if…

Jul. 15– A federal lawsuit says Fayetteville automobile dealer Mike Lallier, who remains accused in South Carolina criminal court of molesting a teenage boy in September 2016, wanted to use his dealership’s liability insurance to cover the costs from a civil lawsuit that a former employee filed in Cumberland County Superior Court. The former employee…

Jul. 11– PANAMA CITY– The air in the heart of Florida’s Panhandle has felt heavy for days, weighed down by Southern humidity and the hazy heat of summer. But Hurricane Michael survivor Octavia Pullum has felt more brewing in that air lately: It’s fear, brought by a storm passing by in the Gulf of Mexico, which she still feels even though it is moving past the…

Jul. 10– According to the data submitted by the reporting insurance companies, insured losses are expected to reach at least $139 million. Across the industry and types of insurance, it appears that just over 60 percent of claims have been closed, with nearly 70 percent of residential property claims closed to date, according to the Missouri Department of…

Jul. 9– Small Business Administration loans to tornado victims thus far total $2,291,500, an SBA spokeswoman said Monday. For homeowners and renters, so far, the SBA has approved 51 loans, with at least 316 loan applications still being processed, said Matthew Young, an SBA spokesman. More than 15 confirmed tornadoes struck the Dayton region and parts of West…

Jul. 4– Serenity Ranch owner Clint Nimmo said the flood was like a scene out of a horror movie. Jessica Meadows, Serenity Ranch staff member and Nimmo’s fiancée, woke up around 8 a.m. Saturday, June 1, to make breakfast. Outside their window, their ranch in Levasy was starting to flood.

Rental property ownership can be a rewarding path to financial freedom. However, whether the property is a vacation rental property that has tenants only renting for short periods of time, or an apartment building with year-round lessees, managing an investment property can also be intimidating. Without prudent safeguards in place to shield against…

Jul. 1– While most of the physical repairs have been made, many Craven County farmers are still struggling to recover ground lost to Hurricane Florence. According to Mike Carroll, Craven County Extension Agent, large-scale family farms producing grains, cotton, peanuts, sweet potatoes and tobacco have repaired most farm buildings and equipment from wind or…

“Under the standard insurance policy, there’s most likely a pretty significant gap in coverage,” said Lucian McMahon, senior research specialist for the Insurance Information Institute. The five companies are Blue Duck, Slidr, Spin, VeoRide and Zagster. The two largest scooter companies in the U.S.- Bird and Lime- generally place the responsibility for accidents…

A hailstorm that ripped through southwest Minnesota last week left thousands of acres of corn and soybeans damaged or destroyed– in many cases too late in the season for farmers to replant their crops. “We had a corn and bean field down to dirt again,” said George Sill, a farmer southwest of Madelia.“ You couldn’ t hardly tell it had been planted there.”.

–The ideal summer may be full of blue skies, sunny days and family vacations, but as the Farmers Insurance ® Seasonal Smarts Digests remind us, summer can also bring plenty of stormy weather with homeowners and drivers across the country facing the potential for seasonal hurricanes, flooding and tornadoes. The good news is that by following a few practical…

Jun. 26– Damages from spring floods, while qualifying the county for recovery aid, are well below thresholds to qualify individual homeowners in the county for federal assistance, emergency management officials advised. Emergency Management Director Adam Weishaar and Road and Bridge superintendent Don Brittain updated the county commission Tuesday…

The visits are taking place in Garfield, Alfalfa, Canadian, Cherokee, Craig, Creek, Delaware, Kay, Kingfisher, Le Flore, Logan, Mayes, Muskogee, Noble, Nowata, Okmulgee, Osage, Ottawa, Pawnee, Payne, Pottawatomie, Rogers, Sequoyah, Tulsa, Wagoner, Washington and Woods counties, all of them approved for FEMA individual assistance for the severe storms, straight-line winds,…

Jun. 25– One of the nation’s biggest car insurance companies ranks Charlotte drivers among the least safe in the U.S.. Allstate Insurance Co., in annual rankings, placed Charlotte a dismal 153rd- safest among 200 cities in 2019, matching the city’s 2018 ranking. Charlotte drivers score poorly on both, Allstate says.

Michael Parson, R- Missouri, issued the following news release:. Governor Mike Kehoe requested that President Donald Trump issue a major disaster declaration to assist residents and businesses in 41 Missouri counties that have been hard hit by flooding, tornadoes, and severe storms beginning on April 29 and continuing throughout the spring.

The North Carolina Department of Insurance issued the following news release, dated June 21:. This hurricane season, Commissioner Causey is so adamant residents are aware of the differences in policy coverage that, for the first time, he is offering free continuing education course credits for insurance agents who attend the conference ” Flood Insurance:…

WASHINGTON The soggy spring has spurred members of Ohio’s U.S. House delegation to ask the federal government for more help for the many Ohio farmers who have been devastated by the flooding. “As you consider the eligibility criteria for the $3,005,442,000 appropriated by Congress to assist farmers, we ask that you keep in mind the countless Ohio families and…

Jun. 19– Citizens Property Insurance Corp. customers in Broward and Palm Beach counties will pay higher rates if the company’s Board of Governors approves Wednesday. In Broward, 29,215 customers would see an average 9.6 percent increase– from $3,057 to $3,351. In Palm Beach County, 10,907 policyholders would see a 4 percent average increase– from $2,901 to…

“We are working to get it posted for a vote in the full Senate and to the governor before July 1,” when the current law expires, Brown said. Assemblymen Vince Mazzeo and John Armato, both D-Atlantic; and DiAnne Gove and Brian Rumpf, both R-Ocean, Atlantic, Burlington, are co-sponsors of identical legislation in the Assembly. Vin Gopal, D-Monmouth; Linda Greenstein,…

Alera Group, a national employee benefits, property& casualty, risk management and wealth management firm, appointed Mark Englert as national Property& Casualty Practice Leader. Englert will be responsible for continuing Alera Group’s path toward building world-class property& casualty solutions. “We are very excited about the new depth and breadth that…

Gov. Greg Abbott has signed a $1.6 billion storm and flood resilience plan nearly two years after Hurricane Harvey battered Texas. Abbott signed the bill Thursday in Houston, where the Category 4 hurricane dumped more than 50 inches of rain. Abbott says a storm cleanup and readiness package passed by the Legislature will mitigate damage from the next catastrophic storm.

Today, Congressmen John Garamendi announced that his bipartisan Flood Insurance for Farmers Act of 2019 was passed by the House Financial Services Committee, unanimously as part of a larger bill reauthorizing the National Flood Insurance Program through the end of fiscal year 2024.. The Flood Insurance for Farmers Act of 2019, which Garamendi introduced…

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the following news release:. “This data demonstrates FEMA’s commitment to build a culture of preparedness by providing insights to our stakeholders that can help close the nation’s insurance gap, said Dr. Daniel Kaniewski, FEMA’s Deputy Administrator for Resilience. “

Jun. 11– LANSING– Michigan motorists will be required to buy significantly more liability coverage under the new auto insurance law, and there are no assurances those extra costs will not offset reductions the law requires in the personal injury protection portion of motorists’ premiums, according to a top insurance industry executive. Whitmer said she would…

WASHINGTON- The National Flood Insurance Program that millions of people rely on has gotten another temporary extension, as members of Congress renew efforts to work out a long-term proposal. The extension through the end of September was tucked into a $19 billion disaster-aid package the U.S. House approved in a 354-58 vote Monday evening.

June 03– Jun. 3– President Donald Trump has declared a major disaster in three Oklahoma counties that have been devastated by flooding, tornadoes and other severe storms. The declaration allows federal assistance for Muskogee, Tulsa and Wagoner counties, which have experienced record-breaking flooding and intense tornadoes since May 7.

Ron DeSantis signed a package of property insurance reforms intended to reduce the number of lawsuits by repair contractors that convince homeowners to sign over benefits of their insurance claims, including the rights to invoice and sue their insurers. The lawsuits added untold millions of dollars to insurers’ cost of doing business, which the insurers…

May 30– May 30– WASHINGTON– The National Flood Insurance Program received a temporary reprieve on Thursday– just one day before it was set to expire and after two previous attempts were thwarted. Congress is on a week-long recess, but the U.S. House had attempted to pass the NFIP reauthorization in a procedural move that would not require a vote if no members…