Hurricane in California hits homeowners already facing insurance crisis
Hurricane in California hits homeowners already facing insurance crisis

This week’s hurricanes in California hit a part of the US that was already struggling with a home insurance crisis. Insurance costs have become too high in most of California, with some insurers leaving the market, unwilling to take the risks posed by the frequency…
Bach Talk: An insured future depends on bold public/private innovation
Bach Talk: An insured future depends on bold public/private innovation

By Amy Bach, Executive Director, United Policyholders So far 2024 has brought more bad news for property owners, public officials, lenders and home builders on the insurance availability and affordability fronts with non-renewals, scant options and high premiums. Front page news across the country. Rate…
Community Foundation grant to help DeSoto residents still recovering from Hurricane Ian
Community Foundation grant to help DeSoto residents still recovering from Hurricane Ian

A nonprofit agency created after Hurricane Ian to aid DeSoto County residents in need of disaster assistance has been awarded a $105,000 grant, the group announced on Tuesday. The Hope DeSoto Long-Term Recovery Group received the grant from the Community Foundation of Sarasota County. The…
Grant to help DeSoto residents still recovering from Hurricane Ian
Grant to help DeSoto residents still recovering from Hurricane Ian

DESOTO COUNTY, Fla. (WWSB) – A nonprofit agency set up after Hurricane Ian to aid DeSoto County residents still in need of disaster assistance has been awarded a $105,000 grant, the group announced Tuesday. The Hope DeSoto Long-Term Recovery Group received the grant from the…
Mitigation Matters
Mitigation Matters

No matter where you live, if you’re a homeowner today, you need to do your best to maintain your property and take steps to avoid it being damaged or destroyed in a severe weather event. Why? 1) No place on earth is immune from risk…
What’s the RX for home insurance headaches?
What’s the RX for home insurance headaches?

Rising home insurance prices and shrinking availability have made headlines across the nation in recent weeks, but the situation is not news to UP. It has been developing regionally for years, and we’ve been contributing to solutions through multiple advocacy and consumer help workstreams. The…
BACH TALK: Consumers need help (with shrinking property insurance affordability and availability)
BACH TALK: Consumers need help (with shrinking property insurance affordability and availability)

Americans today in hurricane, flood and wildfire prone regions (particularly in areas where there have been recent disasters) are paying much higher premiums and having a very hard time finding affordable property insurance options.  This is a national phenomenon that United Policyholders has been helping…
Ain’t no Sunshine When Policyholders’ Leverage is Gone
Ain’t no Sunshine When Policyholders’ Leverage is Gone

It looks like the Florida legislature is about to pass a set of radical amendments that will deprive property owners in the Sunshine State of the power to enforce the laws that give them the right to be treated fairly by insurance companies…and with no…
Who can home and business owners impacted by Hurricane Ian trust?
Who can home and business owners impacted by Hurricane Ian trust?

The amount of destruction, dislocation and loss of life caused by Hurricane Ian is still being calculated, but it’s horrendous, record-breaking and very sad.  Wind damage is bad enough, but when combined with water, repairs are challenging and drying out is essential.  Qualified and reputable…
Louisiana homeowners beware: Here’s how the ‘hurricane deductible’ could limit Zeta claims
Louisiana homeowners beware: Here’s how the ‘hurricane deductible’ could limit Zeta claims

Louisiana homeowners will likely face an unwelcome obstacle as they recover from the damage caused by Hurricane Zeta: the dreaded hurricane deductible. Those deductibles, which became a nearly universal part of insurance contracts on the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina, put the onus on homeowners…
Slow as molasses in January? MS residents deserve insurance fairness
Slow as molasses in January? MS residents deserve insurance fairness

After Hurricane Katrina decimated communities in his home state of Mississippi, concerned citizen Kevin Buckel was outraged to learn that the average insurance payout to the victims was only $15,000 – far below what people needed to repair, rebuild and recover.  He looked around at…
Do you have enough homeowner insurance? Here’s how to find out
Do you have enough homeowner insurance? Here’s how to find out

Three of every five homes in America are underinsured by an average of 20 percent less than full value, according to analytics firm CoreLogic. Is yours one of them? Could you easily put your hands on $50,000 to help rebuild a house with a $250,000…
Florida’s Insured Losses From Irma Reach Nearly $2B and Growing
Florida’s Insured Losses From Irma Reach Nearly $2B and Growing

Florida policyholders so far have filed nearly $2 billion in claims to insurers for damage from Hurricane Irma, the state’s insurance regulator said on Monday. The estimate of insured losses is based on preliminary statewide data that insurers filed with the Florida Office of Insurance…
‘Hurricane Deductibles’ Shift Home-Repair Costs to Consumers
‘Hurricane Deductibles’ Shift Home-Repair Costs to Consumers

Harvey and Irma could trigger requirement that homeowners pay percentage of insured value of property. Tens of thousands of homeowners hit by Hurricane Harvey may soon find out they are on the hook for extra payments under their insurance policies, and that number could rise…
Claims Teams Begin Handling Onslaught of Harvey Claims
Claims Teams Begin Handling Onslaught of Harvey Claims

Hurricane Harvey has set a U.S record, according to the National Weather Service, dumping 51.88 inches of rain in parts of Texas. As the tropical storm moves over southern Louisiana, claims catastrophe teams are moving in to devastated cities in Texas. AIR Worldwide reported severe…
Harvey’s Catastrophic Costs Mount; Many Lack Adequate Insurance
Harvey’s Catastrophic Costs Mount; Many Lack Adequate Insurance

Hurricane Harvey’s second act across southern Texas is turning into an economic catastrophe — with damages likely to stretch into tens of billions of dollars and an unusually large share of victims lacking adequate insurance, according to early estimates. Harvey’s cost could mount to $24…
Be Prepared to Push Insurance Companies for Fair Treatment After Hurricane Harvey, UP Advises
Be Prepared to Push Insurance Companies for Fair Treatment After Hurricane Harvey, UP Advises

United Policyholders Offers Texans Free Home Inventory App, Provides Guidance to Residents for Before and After the Storm As Gulf Coast communities brace for Hurricane Harvey, the national insurance consumer non-profit United Policyholders UP) has a special message for Texans: “Be prepared to push for…
Delaware Governor Carney Signs Insurance Consumer Fairness Bill
Delaware Governor Carney Signs Insurance Consumer Fairness Bill

On Tuesday, August 1, 2017, Delaware Governor John Carney signed into law House Substitute 1 for House Bill 80 (HS 1 for HB 80), a consumer fairness bill that targets unfair discriminatory practices by automobile and homeowners insurance companies to determine premium costs. “Insurance rates…