Articles Posted in Hurricane & Storm Damage

While some Floridians have looked to their insurance companies or FEMA to help with property damage from Hurricane Idalia, homeowners and renters in Pasco County are being urged to apply for relief from the county’s community development department.

The county invites homeowners to apply for up to $25,000 in home repairs at their principal dwelling.

Renters may also qualify for rental assistance of up to $20,000. Should a family or individual need to relocate, this can cover the costs of a security deposit as well as the first and final month’s rent.

Individuals and families with low and moderate incomes are eligible for the assistance.

You can apply for aid here.

What About My Homeowner’s or Renter’s Insurance?

If your homeowner’s or renter’s policy covers storm damage, having it can give you some peace of mind. What happens, though, if the insurance provider rejects your claim? You can suffer severe damages and have no way to rebuild.

Many storm victims may accept the insurance company’s word without challenging it in order to receive the money they are entitled to for reconstruction. That may mean that you leave empty-handed or with insufficient funds.

Insurance firms profit by taking in a large sum of money and paying out fewer claims. Insurance firms receive a flood of claims when a hurricane hits and may attempt to underpay or reject claims when they can.

Most consumers mistakenly believe that their hurricane insurance policy would pay for all house damage that a storm may inflict, but this is not necessarily the case. There are several important things that your typical hurricane insurance policy is likely to not cover. It is crucial to be aware of these exclusions so that you can make the appropriate plans and preparations. In Florida, a few of the major things that storm insurance frequently excludes are as follows:

1. Wind damage: Surprisingly, wind damage is generally excluded from normal storm insurance coverage. This means that your insurance may not pay for repairs if strong winds cause damage to your home.
2. Flooding: Flooding is not often covered by hurricane insurance policies. This is one of the most common exclusions, thus it is crucial to be aware of it. You might wish to buy supplementary flood insurance to protect your house if you reside in a flood-prone location.
3. Backup of your sewage or drains: If your sewer or drains back up as a result of an excessive amount of rain, your hurricane insurance policy probably will not pay for the damages. However, you might be able to buy extra protection for this kind of occurrence.
4. Mold: Mold development is commonly caused by water damage, which is frequently excluded from storm insurance coverage. As a result, these plans frequently do not cover mold damage.
5. Personal Property: Your home’s structural damage will probably be the only thing covered by your hurricane insurance coverage, not your personal belongings. This means that you will probably have to foot the bill for their replacement if a hurricane damages your furniture, electronics, or other personal items.

It is critical to understand your hurricane insurance policy’s restrictions before a storm comes. This way, you can be certain that you have the necessary coverage to secure your house and other personal belongings. Continue reading

Tropical Storm Idalia is intensifying swiftly as it barrels toward Florida and has the potential to reach Category 3 status.

Floridians are being warned of the potential to lose power, and portions of Pasco County will be under mandatory evacuation.

As Tropical Storm Idalia approaches Pasco County, those who live closest to the ocean, in manufactured homes, and in low-lying areas will be required to evacuate, according to the county.

According to the National Hurricane Center, Idalia is anticipated to become a hurricane on Monday and make landfall as a dangerous major storm on Wednesday morning close to the Big Bend of Florida.

You can track the storm here.

What Types of Damage Can We See From a Category 3 Hurricane?

Category 3 hurricanes are major hurricanes that produce widespread devastation. Wind speeds can reach 111 to 130 miles per hour. When Hurricane Katrina hit the United States in 2005, it was a Category 3 storm. While it was in the Gulf of Mexico, it developed into a Category 5 hurricane in just nine hours, but when it hit land again, it became a Category 3.

A Category 3 hurricane can cause buildings and homes to lose their roofs. Winds can uproot or break strong trees. Affected communities can experience near-total power outages that might last days or weeks.

In a Category 3 hurricane, storm surges that are 9 to 12 feet above normal can enter buildings that appear to be far from the beach. Floodwaters can infiltrate the first and second floors of a building, causing extensive water damage.

With Tropical Storm Idalia heading our way, it is important to be prepared. One major tip our Pasco County Hurricane & Storm Damage Claims Attorneys at Whittel & Melton is to take photos or videos of your roof before a severe storm hits your house or business. You will have strong proof to present to your insurance provider if the storm damages your roof in any manner. You should be able to make a convincing case for your claim by showing them photos of your roof before it sustained damage and contrasting them with photos taken after the storm.

Right now, you should make your preparations and evacuate to safety if you live in an area that is requiring it. You can view shelter locations here. You and the safety of your family is most important right now. Continue reading

If Tropical Storm Nicole knocks out your power, you want to make sure that you and your emergency generator are ready.

A portable generator can be your best mechanical friend if you have lost power during a hurricane or storm, but it can also cause serious harm if you do not know what you are doing.

It is critical that you know how to use a generator properly. Here are some tips to help you use a generator safely:

DO:

• Start your machine and run it for a short period of time periodically throughout the year, so you know that the machine is working properly and ready to go when you need it.
• Check the oil frequently.
• Have fresh fuel on hand to power your generator. If your generator runs on gas, then you will need to plan for about 21 gallons a day for it to operate 24 hours.
• Check your generator’s capacity before you power any devices. If your combined wattage for devices that you are powering exceed the capacity of your generator, then this is a recipe for disaster.
• Make sure your extension cords are heavy-duty and properly grounded.
• If you want to connect an emergency generator to your home’s main electrical system, then make sure you hire a qualified technician to install a transfer switch.

DON’T:

• Keep a running generator in your garage or inside your home. Generators need to be at least 15 feet away from enclosed structures as they emit odorless carbon monoxide exhaust fumes that can be deadly.
• Keep fuel stored in your home or garage near appliances, like a water heater, furnace, or any other potentially combustible appliances.
• Power a generator directly to your home’s electrical box as this is a fire hazard.
• Run a generator in rain. Electrical panels that get wet could not only damage the machine, but deliver an electric shock.
• Refuel a generator when it is running. If fuel spills on a hot motor, then this can spark and explosion or fire.

If you have any power outages or downed power lines in your area, then you can report them to Tampa Electric (TECO) at 1-877-588-1010. You can also report storm debris, fallen trees, and street flooding to the City of Tampa at 1-833-TPA-INFO (872-4636).

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2020 is one of the most active storm seasons ever in the waters around the State of Florida, the Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea.

STORM DEDUCTIBLE CONFUSION?!

Florida Property insurance policies typically have two deductibles. A standard deductible for most losses; and a hurricane deductible. The standard “Other Perils” deductible is for pretty much anything covered by the policy, such as fire, pipe bursts and appliance related water damage claims, or windstorms, etc. The hurricane deductible only applies to named Hurricanes. The last major hurricane to hit Florida was Hurricane Michael in the panhandle on October 10, 2018; and more recently in the western portions of the Florida panhandle for Hurricane Sally on September 16, 2020, and Hurricane Zeta on October 28, 2020. Hurricane deductibles are typically 2 or 3 percent of the limit of the insurance for the home which is a lot higher than the standard deductible for all other claims. The Eta storm of November 2020 started off in South Florida counties like Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County as a Tropical Storm (not a hurricane). But as storms in Florida do, things changed, and the weather system chased west back into the Gulf of Mexico where it was reclassified as a Hurricane for a short period of time before heading back to the Nature Coast across Florida again as a Tropical Storm.

DON’T GET FOOLED BY YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY!

First, an insurer may rush to slap a hurricane deductible on your claim when it should not apply because a Tropical Storm is not a hurricane. Second (and this is really the most important!), Insurers in Florida have often told their customers after a storm that unless they absolutely know that their damage is more than their hurricane deductible, then they should not even put in a claim. There are many reasons why this is terrible advice and a bad business practice by insurance companies. As the policyholder, it is not your job to know the exact amount of damage you have in the weeks following a severe storm. You also may discover that the storm caused much more damage than you initially thought or could see in the days following the hurricane. Many Floridians have fallen for the insurers gambit only to attempt to make their claims later on and be told its too late to make the claim.

If you believe you have Hurricane or Tropical Storm damage from any of these strong weather systems that brought havoc to Florida, please call us and we can assist you in determining which deductible applies, assist you with determining the actual extent of the damage to your home, and provide needed guidance through the process with your insurance company.

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