In the wake of Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, New York insurance regulators have been inundated with consumer complaints regarding claims. State regulators have been aggressively pressuring insurers and FEMA to resolve complaints and pay out claims, but their actions have run afoul of federal regulators who claim that the state is over stepping its boundaries. In October, FEMA issued a statement regarding the New York Department of Financial Services, decrying the department’s efforts in obtaining information from insurance companies. State regulators, in response, have only continued to work…
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Connecticut regulators find rampant fraud in emergency aid after Hurricane Irene
Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy has tasked the state’s insurance regulators to investigate allegations of fraud coming from the Department of Social Services. In the wake of Hurricane Irene, hundreds of Connecticut residents sought emergency aid to cover the cost of replacing spoiled food and several other expenses. According to the Department of Social Services, many of the people looking for help from the state were not qualified to receive financial aid because their incomes were too high. These people managed to obtain aid by presenting fraudulent information. Hurricane Irene too…
Read MoreFEMA extends deadline for Hurricane Irene claims to January 23
FEMA has announced that it will be extending the deadline for flood insurance claims related to Hurricane Irene to January 23, 2012. The extension will affect North Carolina, New York and 12 other states that were impacted by the hurricane in late August. FEMA has hopes that the extension will afford those affected by the storm with ample time to file claims and work with their insurance companies. Typically, insurers require proof of loss within 60 days of a natural disaster, but FEMA claims that victims of Irene are due…
Read MoreNorth Carolina insurance official calls for insurers to re-evaluate claims from Hurricane Irene
Two North Carolina officials are petitioning the state’s insurance industry to return to areas impacted by Hurricane Irene in the hopes of resolving claims before winter comes in full force. Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, along with Bob Etheridge, an advisor for Governor Beverly Perdue during August’s hurricane, have written a formal appeal to FEMA to have insurers return to the state and assists with additional claims. The insurers being asked to return to the state are part of the National Flood Insurance Program, which provides insurance coverage for many households…
Read MoreState Farm reports losses due to weather-related catastrophes
State Farm, one of the nation’s largest insurance companies has released information regarding the cost of a number of weather-related catastrophes that have caused widespread damage this year. These disasters, coming in the form of floods, hurricanes and earthquakes, have taken a heavy toll on the insurance industry as a whole. Earlier in the year, State Farm attempted to mitigate the damage caused by an outbreak of tornados and hail storms that swept through the Eastern U.S. This past summer brought more trouble, however, with wildfires in Texas and tropical…
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