TALLAHASSEE — Almost one in five Floridians whose homes were damaged by hurricanes up to four months ago have yet to come to a settlement with their insurers.

Information released by the state Office of Insurance Regulation shows more than 170,000 claims remain open. The policyholders who filed them are increasingly frustrated.
Insurance coverage should be a quilt against cold times, said Sen. Rudy Garcia, chairman of the Senate banking and insurance committee.

"I don't think the people of Florida feel the warmth," Garcia said.
"What is the reason that these people are not going to get to have Christmas? It's because insurance companies are being lazy," Garcia said.

Handling of insurance claims affects the greatest number of Floridians and carries the biggest immediate financial need. Yet it remains largely unaddressed in Florida.

Lawmakers in special session last week failed to take up the topic.
An emergency rule sought by CFO Tom Gallagher to impose claims deadlines resulted only in a requirement that insurance CEOs acknowledge they may be judged by how well they meet target dates: Nov. 22 for hurricanes Charley and Frances, and Dec. 8 for hurricanes Ivan and Jeanne.

Senova Stokes saw the impact of that firsthand through her insurance agent, who called Citizens Property Insurance on Dec. 7, the day before the deadline, to make a good-faith effort to settle with the Palm Bay woman.
"My agent said, so Miss Stokes can be expecting a check? And (the Citizens representative) said, 'No, and so what,' " Stokes said. "And then she hung up on her."

Stokes, forced out of her house by mold, said Friday she had yet to receive money for repairs.

Nine of the top-10 insurers with hurricane claims had closed only 90 percent or less of their claims.
Hartford Fire Insurance reported 72 percent claims closed. Mobile USA reported 59 percent closed. The state-run Citizens Property Insurance has closed 58 percent of its claims.

In Florida, there is no law requiring claims to be settled within a certain time, a point state regulators note when reviewing late claims complaints against insurance companies even during ordinary times.
Senate President Tom Lee said it is worth scrutiny when the Legislature takes on hurricane-related issues in its March session.

"I have no illusions about the behavior of big corporations when they see an opportunity to frustrate the public with the way they conduct their business operations," Lee said. "There's no doubt that the more difficult you make it for people to collect their money, the more likely it is they will go away."

Others also said they are willing to consider claims deadlines.
"I think we should talk about it," said Sen. Charlie Clary, R-Destin. "It is worth study."

Some lawmakers don't think the issue needs to wait.
"If you're sitting without your home repaired, a legislative session next year doesn't give you much comfort," said Rep. Bob Allen, R-Merritt Island. "I would like to see the insurance director and the Cabinet go ahead and give emergency authority to get the claims wrapped up."

Rep. Stan Mayfield — whose own insurance claim didn't result in a check until last week — was wary of anything other than cautious deliberation.

"It's real hard to change the rules on folks in the middle of the game," the Vero Beach Republican said. Had insurance companies been given deadlines at the start of the storm season, "then these numbers would be very different."
Gallagher said it would do no good to impose a statutory deadline. Insurance companies face "an almost impossible situation" of finding enough adjusters to move any faster.

"What good does (a legal deadline) do?" Gallagher asked. "People do as much as they can possibly do.
"Believe me, Citizens would do anything they could do (to close more claims). They do not need nor want my aggravation," he said. "They're doing everything they can."

Because of consumer complaints, Gallagher has created a task force to address the problems at Citizens Property Insurance.

Sam Miller, vice president of the Florida Insurance Council, said the state agency has identified at least nine companies overwhelmed by claims. "It's ordered them to do a better job," Miller said.
He defended the industry operating under extraordinary circumstances.

"Never in the history of the world have we ever had anything like this," Miller said. "We never expected it. We did the best we could."
Mobile USA insures mobile home properties. It is owned by the Philadelphia Insurance Companies, which also has Liberty American Insurance writing residential policies in Florida.

At corporate headquarters in Pennsylvania, PIC President James McGuire was surprised Friday to hear of Mobile USA's poor standing.

"We've prided ourselves on closing 95 percent of the claims and we've actually completed a customer service survey and had positive results," McGuire said.
Mobile USA President Dan Eldridge said closure rates are misleading, because his company holds claims open even after it has sent checks, "in case there is a supplemental payment."

Eldridge said other insurance companies might look better because they are reporting claims "closed" even when policyholders contest the amount paid, or believe they are owed much more.
Gallagher agreed.

"A lot of these 'closed' cases are going to get opened again," he said.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Pure Air Control Services
800-422-7873