First Steps After a Tornado
First Steps After a Tornado

United Policyholders is a nonprofit organization that is a voice and an information resource for insurance consumers in all 50 states.  UP has helped guide disaster survivors on the road to recovery since 1991. Use this information with The Disaster Recovery Handbook and Household Inventory…
FEMA can help California communities recover under the Stafford Act
FEMA can help California communities recover under the Stafford Act

When disaster hits, FEMA can help communities recover under the Stafford Act (Disasterassistance.gov). If a Disaster Declaration is issued, it can be either a Emergency Declaration (to supplement state, local, and tribal government efforts to provide debris removal and emergency protective measures or to lessen/avert…
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…
Where Are Florida’s Leaders Explaining How Floridians Can Fully Get Paid and Not Get Ripped Off By Their Own Insurance Companies?
Where Are Florida’s Leaders Explaining How Floridians Can Fully Get Paid and Not Get Ripped Off By Their Own Insurance Companies?

Nowhere to be found. That is the answer. It is quite proper to warn people about unscrupulous scoundrels without licenses who are gauging Florida’s Hurricane Ian victims. Trying to ferret out those individuals and asking the public for information and to turn them in is…
Hurricane Ian UPdate & Roadmap to Recovery Info
Hurricane Ian UPdate & Roadmap to Recovery Info

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. Fortunately this is not Florida’s first hurricane – and help resources are pouring in. United Policyholders has set up a Hurricane…
Tips To Help Consumers Get Fair Insurance Treatment After Hurricane Ian
Tips To Help Consumers Get Fair Insurance Treatment After Hurricane Ian

Insurers and Public Officials Must Ensure Consumer Claims Get Paid in Full Washington, DC – Today Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and United Policyholders (UP) shared resources to help consumers get their wind and flood insurance claims paid promptly, fully, and fairly in the wake of Hurricane…
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…
Apply for FEMA Assistance
Apply for FEMA Assistance

Check if Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has made an individual assistance declaration in your area. If so, disaster assistance may be able to fill insurance gaps or provide help if you’ve been waiting more than 30 days on a homeowner’s claim. United Policyholders encourages all…
Much of the damage from Hurricane Ian will be from flooding, but will homeowners be covered?
Much of the damage from Hurricane Ian will be from flooding, but will homeowners be covered?

Ian has now regained hurricane strength after exiting the state of Florida. It’s now threatening the Carolinas. A lot of destruction from the storm is from water. Massive storm surges inundated cities and towns along the Gulf Coast, and there’s been heavy rain across much…
Catch UP on Additional Living Expense (ALE) Alternatives with Natasha O’Flaherty
Catch UP on Additional Living Expense (ALE) Alternatives with Natasha O’Flaherty

Colorado Attorney Natasha O’Flaherty has been assisting wildfire impacted households with insurance matters since a 2020 wildfire destroyed hundreds of homes in her community.  In this Catch UP segment, she discusses approaches she took on behalf of clients who needed help finding temporary housing when…
Should wildfire victims get more insurance money up front? Some lawmakers think so.
Should wildfire victims get more insurance money up front? Some lawmakers think so.

When wildfire struck Grand County, Marjorie Cranston and her husband lost their home of 15 years. The loss was hard enough, Cranston said, without spending months scouring her brain to remember every single item lost in the flames. The 2020 East Troublesome Fire destroyed an estimated 366…
For people who lost homes in the Marshall Fire, insurance might not cover everything.
For people who lost homes in the Marshall Fire, insurance might not cover everything.

It could be months before many homeowners that lost everything in the Marshall Fire are able to even clean up the debris left by the blaze. In the meantime, many are already girding for battle with their insurance companies. Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway is…
Boulder County fire victims have insurance questions. Here are some answers.
Boulder County fire victims have insurance questions. Here are some answers.

Are you underinsured? (Possibly.) Should you wait for a master builder to redo the whole neighborhood? (No.) Can you get a living expenses check now? (Yes. Do it.) Meanwhile, all Colorado homeowners should do this tuneup. Insurance, when it works, is meant to be restorative.…
Virtual Roadmap to Recovery
Virtual Roadmap to Recovery

The shelter in place orders that required so many of us to get comfortable (maybe a little too comfortable) on Zoom enabled us to fine-tune our virtual service delivery and give insured loss victims uninterrupted access to the answers and information they need. Virtually, we…
RCRC partners with United Policyholders to provide wildfire recovery assistance to rural communities
RCRC partners with United Policyholders to provide wildfire recovery assistance to rural communities

Rural County Representatives of California and its affiliated entity, Golden State Finance Authority, have partnered with the non-profit United Policyholders by providing $50,000 in funding to the 2021 California Wildfires Roadmap to Recovery Program to support rural county communities impacted by catastrophic wildfires. The program…
Butte Strong Fund grants for fire recovery include rebuilding, fire mitigation funding
Butte Strong Fund grants for fire recovery include rebuilding, fire mitigation funding

PARADISE — The Butte Strong Fund approved $250,000 for Habitat for Humanity to buy home lots in Paradise for affordable housing in March. Nine grants approved by the North Valley Community Foundation in the past month total $610,805. The grant to Habitat for Humanity of…
Rep. Marsh hosts insurance webinar, legal clinic for fire survivors
Rep. Marsh hosts insurance webinar, legal clinic for fire survivors

Those who lost homes in the Almeda and South Obenchain fires could find advice handling their insurance in a webinar this week and an online clinic next week. Oregon Rep. Pam Marsh of Ashland will host a free online workshop with an insurance focused nonprofit…
Step away from the blowtorch…
Step away from the blowtorch…

The extreme cold, snow, and ice that swept across the U.S. in February 2021 is proof positive that closing the door on 2020 wasn’t a cure-all. If your home or business suffered damage due to freezing or bursting pipes or the weight of snow and ice on the…