Hurricane Irma News

Travelers Must Pay $2M for Yacht Lost in Irma: Florida Law Bars ‘Technicality’ Denials

Travelers must pay a $2 million claim by the owner of a 92-foot-long yacht that was sunk by Hurricane Irma because Florida law does not allow insurers to deny claims based on inconsequential technicalities. A panel of the U.S. 11th …

U.S. Hurricane Victims Want Improved Disaster Relief, With Faster Money, Less Red Tape

Survivors of storms that pounded several U.S. states say the nation’s disaster aid system is broken and that they want reforms to get money into victims’ hands faster, with less red tape. On the 10th anniversary of Superstorm Sandy’s landfall …

Florida Lawsuit Charges United P&C With RICO Violations in Widespread Claims Denials

In the ongoing war between restoration companies and insurers in Florida, contractors suing carriers in assignment-of-benefits claims is nothing new. And insurers have long argued that some construction firms are colluding with adjusters and law firms to jack up claims …

Federal Court Finds 27 Months is Too Late to File Irma Claim

If the insurance policy calls for “prompt notice” of property damage after a storm, the policyholder cannot wait two years to file a claim, a federal court in Miami has ruled. In LMP Holdings vs. Scottsdale Insurance Co., the U.S. …

Court Affirms Miami Condo Tower Hurricane Damage Award That Disappointed Both Sides

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a jury verdict that found an insurer liable for $2.6 million in damages to a Miami condominium tower caused by Hurricane Irma, rejecting arguments made in appeals filed by parties on both sides …

Florida Woman Pleads Guilty to Hurricane Irma Disaster Assistance Fraud

A Florida woman has pleaded guilty to lying about damage caused by Hurricane Irma. Deannajo White, 39, pleaded guilty in Jacksonville federal court Friday to one count of disaster assistance fraud, according to court records. She faces up to 30 …

Florida Woman Found Guilty of Hurricane Irma Relief Fraud

A Florida woman has been convicted of fraudulently obtaining Hurricane Irma disaster relief money. Court records show that 37-year-old Karen Latrice Houston was convicted by a jury in Tampa federal court this week of three counts of theft of government …

N.Y. Updates Insurance Company Disaster Response, Recovery Plan Requirements

The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) has issued updated disaster response and recovery plan requirements for all insurance companies licensed to conduct business in New York state. It issued these updated requirements in light of disasters that may …

Natural Disasters Cost Insurers a Record $144 Billion in 2017: Swiss Re’s sigma

Global insured losses from natural catastrophes were US$144 billion in 2017, the highest-ever recorded in a single year, according to the latest sigma study from the Swiss Re Institute. The biggest losses came from Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria (HIM), …

2017’s Natural Hazards and the Destruction They Brought: CoreLogic

CoreLogic’s annual Natural Hazard Risk Summary and Analysis shows that 2017 was a year of relatively average activity for most U.S. natural hazards with the exception of wildfires in California and flooding from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The annual report …