Home insurers in Florida have denied tens of thousands of claims made by property owners over damage caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, according to data compiled by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (FLOIR).
As of Friday, 19,068 residential claims made over Hurricane Helene were closed without payment out of a total of 57,415. As of Monday, 27,834 residential claims linked to damages caused by Hurricane Milton were closed without payment, out of a total of 202,989. In both cases, the number of denied claims outweighed the number of claims closed with payment.
While FLOIR does not include an explanation for why these claims were denied, it is likely they did not make the deductible—the amount policyholders are expected to pay before the insurance plan starts to pay—or they were not covered by the homeowner’s insurance policy. Another possibility is that policyholders making the claims could not be reached by the insurance company.
Newsweek contacted FLOIR for comment by email on Tuesday morning.
Cars are flooded in an apartment complex after Hurricane Milton on October 10, 2024, in Clearwater, Florida. Florida home insurers have closed tens of thousands of claims without payment.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Mark Friedlander, director of corporate communications at the Insurance Information Institute, previously told Newsweek that most likely the denied claims are “primarily flood claims that are not covered by a standard property insurance, condo insurance or flood insurance policy. You need flood insurance to cover a flood claim,” he added.
Residential claims made up the better part of most claims following both hurricanes in Florida, which included claims for commercial property, private flood, business interruption, and commercial and private car insurance.
FLOIR’s data show that Florida homeowners, already hit by skyrocketing premiums in the past few years, have likely received another blow when the two hurricanes hit the state’s Gulf Coast between late September and early October, spreading devastation in the region within less than two weeks.
While the damages caused by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton are still being fully assessed, FLOIR estimates the total estimated insured losses to reach a total of $1,437,491,638 for Hurricane Helene and $2,878,981,114 for Hurricane Milton.
How many claims haven’t been paid?
Hurricane Helene
As of October 25, there have been a total of 127,066 claims made with Florida insurers in connection to damages caused by Hurricane Helene, according to FLOIR. Of these, 57,415 have been residential claims.
So far, 23,450 of all claims have been closed without payment, the vast majority of which—19,068—affected residential property claims. By comparison, a total of 29,373 have been closed with payment, including 10,460 residential claims.
Hurricane Milton
As of October 28, there have been 253,452 claims reported to Florida insurers linked to damages caused by Hurricane Milton. Of these, 202,989 have been residential claims.
In this case, the number of claims closed without payment—32,016—is slightly higher than the number of claims closed with payment—28,088. When it comes to residential claims, 27,834 have been closed without payment, while 17,076 have been closed with payment.
Do you live in Florida and have had an insurance claim rejected by your home insurer? Contact g.carbonaro@newsweek.com.
