Hurricane Sandy News

New Maps Put 33K More New Jersey Homes in Flood Zones

New Jersey’s adoption of expanded flood maps in the wake of Superstorm Sandy has put more than 33,000 additional residential buildings in flood zones, a nearly 15 percent increase.The disaster recovery plan announced last week by the Christie administration shows …

FEMA Data Suggests Some Insurers Handling NFIP Claims Faster Than Others

Up and down the Atlantic coast, people are telling horror stories about how long it has taken to get an insurance check for flood damage caused by Superstorm Sandy. Nearly 40 percent are still waiting for the final settlements they …

N.J. Congressional Delegation Expresses Concern Over NFIP Claims

On Tuesday Feb. 12, New Jersey’s Congressional delegation sent a letter to Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator W. Craig Fugate, expressing their concern over what the delegation described as “the backlog of claims” in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). …

National Hurricane Center Report: Sandy Was 2nd-Costliest Hurricane in U.S.

Superstorm Sandy was the deadliest hurricane in the northeastern U.S. in 40 years and the second-costliest in the nation’s history, according to a report released Tuesday, Feb. 12.The storm’s effects reached far and wide, according to the National Hurricane Center …

Florida Senate to Unveil Property Insurance Reforms

Florida lawmakers are planning next week to release a draft version of a property insurance reform bill. The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee has taken the lead on property insurance reform this year and so far has listened to more …

Colorado Politicians Mad Over Sandy Bill Minus Wildfire Aid

Colorado politicians are steaming that $125 million in aid for last year’s wildfires was removed from the Sandy relief bill. The Republican-controlled House of Representatives stripped that funding from the Sandy bill before approving it last week. That infuriated Colorado’s …

New Maps Show 35,000 More NYC-Area Buildings in Flood Zones

Twice as many homes and businesses in and near New York City would be in flood zones under new maps that may force more property-owners to buy flood insurance, complicate post-Superstorm Sandy rebuilding for some and confront others with the …

Kansas, Missouri Could Be Hit by Disaster Aid Fight

Midwesterners accustomed to generous government aid after ice storms, floods and tornadoes may soon have to look somewhere else for help when disaster strikes. Even as the U.S. House on Jan. 15 passed a $50.7 billion aid package for victims …

Munich Re 2012 Cat Report Underscores Extreme Weather in U.S.; Sandy Losses

The figures for natural catastrophse that occurred in 2012 are “dominated by weather extremes in the USA,” according to a report from Munich Re. The reinsurers said the U.S. “accounted for a higher proportion of global natural catastrophe losses than …

Events that Topped World Insurance News in 2012

While 2012 wasn’t as tumultuous as 2011, it had its share of insurance shaking trends and events. Here in roughly chronological order are some of them: 1) The costs of the flooding in Thailand in 2011, wasn’t conclusively calculated until …