Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Imelda shows how TDI responds to storms


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Imelda shows how TDI responds to storms

By Kent Sullivan
Insurance Commissioner

Just two years after Hurricane Harvey, tragic images of flood victims wading through Houston and Southeast Texas once again dominated the news. Even before the floodwaters receded, we began working to help victims recover.
At TDI, we have two primary concerns in the immediate aftermath of a major storm:
  • How can we help consumers?
  • How is the insurance industry responding?
We have a team experienced in responding to catastrophic storms that quickly assembles any time there’s a threat in the Gulf. The weekend after Imelda’s flooding, we kept our toll-free Help Line open to help consumers and agents. We also developed information in English and Spanish that we sent to media and posted on our website.
We also closely monitor how Texas insurance companies respond after a disaster. We want to know:
  • How many claims they’re getting and how many they expect.
  • Whether there’s a need for more emergency adjusters or other resources.
  • Are there any issues affecting their ability to help consumers?
Based on early estimates, it appears Imelda will produce about 10-15% of the claim volume of Harvey, largely auto claims. That’s still a significant storm to handle. But it appears the industry was generally ready and able to rise to the occasion. Companies report that they had adjusters and processes in place to handle the volume and quickly begin issuing checks to policyholders.
While Imelda was smaller in scope than Harvey, I believe the lessons we learned two years ago left TDI and the industry better prepared to respond after a major storm. That’s critical because insurance is the key to recovery.
More to come...

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