As Tropical Storm Isaac moves westward away from Florida and toward Louisiana, Florida’s largest property insurer has lowered its estimate of the number of claims it thinks it might receive.
Citizen Property Insurance Corp. said that depending on the final path of Isaac, it expects to receive between 5,000 to 6,000 claims. That is significantly below its earlier estimate of up to 50,000 claims.
The claims could come from from the Florida Keys, to southern portions of the state, and finally the state’s northern Gulf Coast region.
As of Monday, the insurer had received 767 claims, with the majority from Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
“If damages result from this storm, we will quickly move into the affected areas to aid policyholders as they begin the recovery process,” said Citizens Chairman Carlos A. Lacasa in a statement.
Citizens said it has been holding classes to educate 300 independent claims adjusters, in addition to the 450 claims adjusters who are currently deployed around the state. If necessary, the insurer can call on up to 3,400 pre-qualified adjusters to handle claims.
Citizens has more than enough cash on hand to pay claims without having to levy assessment on policyholders. As of June, Citizens reported that it expects that it will have $6 billion in surplus, minus any losses, by year’s end. The insurer also has access to $6.9 billion from the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund before it would have to tap into the $750 million in private reinsurance it bought earlier this year.
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