More than $25 million in damage occurred in late April in north Georgia when a string of twisters swept through the state, including metropolitan Atlanta, hitting homes and businesses in Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett and Hall counties.
Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine described the tornadoes as the second largest insurance disaster in Georgia and as one of the most financially-devastating storms in Georgia’s history.
Oxendine attributed the damage he saw to a tornado, which caused more than 36,000 customers to lose electricity in metro Atlanta, while 8,000 in northwest Georgia lost power.
Latest statistics indicate that more than 4,000 homes, 400 cars and 80 agricultural buildings were damaged.
Tenn. hard-hit
Two strong waves of tornadoes hit Ten-nessee with severe thunderstorms and tornadoes tearing off roofs, overturning cars and leaving 11 people dead.
Tennessee Commerce and Insurance Commissioner Paula A. Flowers announced that her department was ready to assist consumers and insurance companies as they work to rebuild the communities affected by last week’s tornadoes.
“In the wake of the deadly and devastating storms and tornadoes that struck Tennessee, victims need to know what to expect from their insurance companies, and how to avoid and report unscrupulous home repair and other disaster-related scams,” the department said.
The department issued several consumer bulletins to help disaster victims avoid repair scams, handle insurance issues and report problems to state regulators.
“Based on what we have seen before, there may be individuals who will try to take advantage of people who’ve been victims of these storms,” Mary Clement, Tennessee’s Director of Consumer Affairs said.
“We find that so many consumer complaints against insurance companies stem from misunderstanding, miscommunication or a policyholder’s failure to read and understand a policy,” Stephani Ryan, director of Consumer Insurance Services said.
The department has a tornado hotline, (800) 342-4029.
Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Windstorm Georgia Tennessee
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