FEBRUARY 18, 2015
There have already been a large number of filings, but more
are expected as a result of ice dams.
This winter hasn’t been an easy on for people living in
Boston and the surrounding area, and insurance claims have been piling up as a
result of damage from snow and collisions on slippery and narrowed roads.
Everything from leaky roofs to car accidents that resulted
from the weather have been keeping insurers busy.
The insurance claims are only expected to rise as the
weather-related damages are predicted to worsen over the next few weeks in the
Boston area.
Meteorologists have been predicting that more snow is on its way,
and insurance companies have been bracing themselves for a rise in the number
of problems that will come with them. Moreover, as the spring starts to arrive,
insurers also believe that customers will continue their filings as they
discover problems that had been buried in snow and that will only start to
reveal themselves with the melt.
The main concern, at the moment, is insurance claims that
will come as a result of the forming of ice dams.
These can stop drainage from flowing properly and can drive
water back into houses, causing leaks. Many homeowners insurance policyholders
have already started to make reports of damage from ice dams, but it is
believed that this is only the beginning. Many insurance companies have
received double to triple the number of claims of this nature that they would
have experienced in the typical year. That said, they are only predicting that
there will be more damage to come.
Moreover, insurance companies are also warning customers
that if they see a little bit of water now, that could be only the beginning of
the true problem. As the spring melt begins, it will bring a great deal more
water with it than has started to show up in homes at the moment.
Many insurers are contracting with independent adjusters in
order to make sure that they will have enough people available to visit
homeowners and make assessments based on insurance claims that have been made.
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Insurance claims on the rise as snow piles on
February 12, 2015
The pileup of snowstorms has caused insurance claims to
spike and insurers to bring on additional adjusters to assess the cost of the
damage as Boston-area residents deal with everything from leaky roofs to
collisions on narrow roads.
These weather-related losses are likely to get worse in
coming weeks:
Forecasters call for more snow, and insurers expect more problems,
now hidden by snow, to surface when spring arrives. In particular, the snow
accumulated on rooftops is leading to the creation of ice dams, which prevent
drainage and cause leaks inside houses.
On Tuesday, Deland, Gibson Insurance Associates in Wellesley
Hills received 30 claims, triple the usual number and mostly tied to ice dams ,
said Tom Skelly, a vice president. In most cases, the company is keeping the
claims open because it expects more damage to come.
“We are telling the clients it’s not the end,” Skelly said.
“The water you see is just the beginning.”
Insurance companies say their phones are jammed with
customer calls about ice dams. About 25 percent of the new claims that
Quincy-based Arbella Insurance is receiving are tied to ice dams, said Joe
Salerno, vice president of claims. He expects it to grow as high 40 percent of
claims.
Plymouth Rock Assurance, primarily an auto insurer with a
smaller homeowners business, has seen damage claims for homes jump to nine
times the normal volume this week, said Chris Olie, its chief executive.
“Right now, my staff is drinking from the fire hose,” Olie
said.
Plymouth Rock is contracting with independent adjusters to
supplement the staffers visiting homeowners and accessing the amount of damage
to their homes.
Liberty Mutual brought adjusters from out-of-state offices
to handle the deluge of claims around the region, in hopes of speeding up the
process, said Glenn Greenberg, a spokesman for the Boston-based insurer.
“We have several more adjusters positioned to come to the
region should our claims volume increase,” he said.
Damage from ice dams can range from a few thousand to tens
of thousands of dollars, depending on severity and the value of the home. And
while homeowner policies tend to cover damage to the home itself, they usually
don’t pay for losses to personal property, such as computers, televisions, and
stoves that may be near the leak.
Insurance experts stressed that homeowners should deal with
ice dams as soon as possible, using an snow rake to clear roofs and then a
mallet to break up some of the ice packs. To keep ice from building up,
homeowners should salt the roof edges, said Skelly, of Deland Gibson.
In some cases, ice dams may be significant and need the
expertise of roofers. But many of those companies are overwhelmed by work this
week.
Newton Roofing Residential received 174 voice mails in a
span of less than four hours on Tuesday, said Richard Melo, the company’s
general manager.
“It’s an absolute disaster,” he said. “We’re piecing together
crews and using some subcontractors.”
Insurers said few auto claims related to slick roads and
winter weather have been filed, largely because of the state travel ban that
was issued during the January blizzard and decisions by companies to close their
offices and allow workers to telecommute, said Salerno, with Arbella Insurance.
But snowbanks are starting to resemble walls, which can
prevent drivers from seeing oncoming traffic as they inch out of driveways or
side streets, Salerno said.
“We are anticipating seeing more peek-out claims,” he said.
Insurance officials advise consumers to read through their
policies and to take photographs of any damage, with time stamps, while they
wait for the adjusters to arrive. If they make emergency repairs, consumers
should save all receipts.
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Polar vortex sends snow to Georgia, causing serious damage to insured property and vehicles
Georgia became a victim of unexpected snow storms recently.
The state is unaccustomed to experiencing such events and, as such, the snow
caused a great deal of damage to homes and vehicles. The snow storms that
Georgia has been experiencing are linked to the so called polar vortex
phenomenon that has cause temperatures to plummet throughout the U.S. States
that typically experience very mild winter seasons have seen heavy snowfall as
a result of the polar vortex. In these states, insured losses are particularly
high.
Snowfall caused an estimated $10 million in damage
throughout the state
According to the state’s Department of Insurance, an
estimated $10 million in damages to insured properties and vehicles has been
caused by the recent snow storm. Insurance claims have been flowing in since
the snow began to fall. As little as one inch of snow was enough to cause major
highways to shut down due to various car accidents had been reported.
Properties were also affected by the snowfall, which lead to significant water
damage as well as other problems throughout the state.
Damage estimates to be affected as insurance claims are
assessed
The damage estimates highlighted by the Department of
Insurance are based on insurance claims being fielded by the state’s insurers.
Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens notes that estimates are based only on a
small sampling of insurance claims. Insurers are still gathering and assessing
claims that are coming in throughout the state. The estimates provided by the
state agency are likely to change as more claims are assessed by insurers, but
whether or not the estimated cost of damages will be significantly affected is
unclear at this time.
Polar vortex sparks strange weather events throughout he US.
The polar vortex has been linked to strange weather
conditions throughout the U.S. Nearly every state in the country has
experienced freezing temperatures as a result of the climatic phenomenon and
snow has been reported in parts of the country that have traditionally seen
snowfall only very rarely during the winter months. The insurance industry is
expected to suffer a financial blow from the polar vortex, which may translate
into higher insurance rates in the future so they cover their hefty profits
that were into many billions last year.