LOTS of people survived the storm….
They are now trying to put their lives together …
But ?
In other place there IS insurance policies to cover stuff, it costs….
In Florida and across the South and MidWest?
The credo IS?
“Your on your OWN’….
That ain’t gonna help them rebuilt…..
“Florida is already having a problem with [insurance] availability. It’s having a problem with affordability. And it’s having a problem with reliability when insurance companies are going insolvent,” Nancy Watkins, a principal at Milliman actuarial consultants, told Tom Frank of E&E News. “All three of the pillars of a sustainable market are under threat.”
The timing of the crisis is particularly brutal given Florida’s recent efforts to attract big financial institutions and new development to its business-friendly confines. The state’s comparative affordability and livability to cold and bureaucratic northeast cities has been central to the sales pitch.
Earlier this year, Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican heavyweight who’s widely believed to be planning a presidential run in 2024, sought to remedy the state’s flagging insurance market by spearheading a $2 billion reinsurance program to tamp down costs. State regulators later designated Citizens as a financial backstop for any insurance company that can’t pay off its claims.
Paying for that could come at a tremendous expense.
“If Florida gets hit with one (or more) big storms and Citizens can’t pay its claims of those of other carriers, guess who’s on the hook? Yep, nearly every Floridian with an insurance policy,” POLITICO’s Gary Fineout reported in July, eight weeks before meteorologists spotted Ian forming near the Lesser Antilles. “That’s because the law allows Citizens to add a surcharge, derisively known as a hurricane tax, to the bills of its customers and eventually customers of other insurance polices, such as auto, to pay off its debts.”
DeSantis is already facing tough questions about what comes next.
More from Tom: DeSantis danced around a question about whether Citizens insurance has enough money to pay Ian-related wind claims. Instead, he emphasized the storm’s damaging floods, which are usually covered by the federal government.
‘We are looking at a lot of flood claims,’ DeSantis said, adding that Citizens should be able to pay Ian claims without charging a special assessment on its own policyholders, or on all insurance policies in the state except for medical and malpractice coverage.
Watkins said disputes and litigation will arise when property insurers like Citizens deny claims because they say damage was caused by flooding — which they don’t cover.
‘In a litigious environment like Florida, that could be a perfect storm on top of a perfect storm,’ Watkins said.”….
Note…
National media is alsready asking about Florida evacuation warning delays….