Florida Insurance Regulator: Hurricane Deductible Does Not Apply
Southeast News • August 22, 2008
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty issued an advisory to remind Florida consumers and authorized insurers that the hurricane deductible of their homeowner's policy does not apply at this ...
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Subject: RE: RE: Named Storm
Posted On: August 25, 2008, 10:01 am CDT
Posted By: InsMgmt
Comment:
Information taken from an advisory brochure issued by the FL BOI:
Hurricane Deductibles
The Hurricane Insurance Affordability and Availability Act offers homeowners a broader selection of deductible amounts. These deductibles depend on the value of the insured property and apply only to hurricane claims (i.e., resulting from a hurricane declared by the National Weather Service). Consequently, you may owe extra out-of-pocket costs for
damage that occurs:
• any time a hurricane watch or warning is issued for any part of Florida
• up to 72 hours after such a watch or warning ends and
• any time when hurricane conditions exist throughout the state
Homeowner Hurricane Deductible Table
Insured Value Minimum Allowed Maximum Allowed:
$0-$50,000 $250 2% of insured value
$50,001-$99,999 $500 2% of insured value
$100,000-$500,000 $500 10% of insured value
$500,001 and up $500 Unlimited
New legislation passed following the 2004 hurricane season - when many homeowners had damage from multiple storms and faced multiple deductible payments - limits the number of times a hurricane deductible must be paid to once per calendar year, per insurance company.
If you change companies, you could pay two deductibles. Once the hurricane deductible has been met, subsequent hurricane losses are subject to the "other perils" deductible.
So, it would appear that the FL BOI has addressed the tactic some insurers use to apply a "wind/hail" or "named wind storm" deductible when storm winds are below hurricane strength.
Subject: RE: RE: Named Storm
Hurricane Deductibles
The Hurricane Insurance Affordability and Availability Act offers homeowners a broader selection of deductible amounts. These deductibles depend on the value of the insured property and apply only to hurricane claims (i.e., resulting from a hurricane declared by the National Weather Service). Consequently, you may owe extra out-of-pocket costs for
damage that occurs:
• any time a hurricane watch or warning is issued for any part of Florida
• up to 72 hours after such a watch or warning ends and
• any time when hurricane conditions exist throughout the state
Homeowner Hurricane Deductible Table
Insured Value Minimum Allowed Maximum Allowed:
$0-$50,000 $250 2% of insured value
$50,001-$99,999 $500 2% of insured value
$100,000-$500,000 $500 10% of insured value
$500,001 and up $500 Unlimited
New legislation passed following the 2004 hurricane season - when many homeowners had damage from multiple storms and faced multiple deductible payments - limits the number of times a hurricane deductible must be paid to once per calendar year, per insurance company.
If you change companies, you could pay two deductibles. Once the hurricane deductible has been met, subsequent hurricane losses are subject to the "other perils" deductible.
So, it would appear that the FL BOI has addressed the tactic some insurers use to apply a "wind/hail" or "named wind storm" deductible when storm winds are below hurricane strength.