Hurricane Helene and Milton Costs Top $4.3B

According to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, the combined estimated insurance losses for Hurricanes Milton and Helene exceed $4.3 billion, with over 380,000 claims made for both storms. The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved $660.1 million in aid for both storms to assist with losses, according to a recent article by Florida Realtors.

Furthermore, FEMA reported that 10,789 households, comprising over 26,545 individuals, are currently residing in Transitional Sheltering Assistance hotels and motels, while 2,758 tarps have been placed on homes through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Operation Blue Roof. So far, the National Flood Insurance Program has disbursed $559 million for the two storms. The Small Business Administration has allocated $34 million in loans.

Hurricane Milton
On October 9, Hurricane Milton struck near Siesta Key, arriving as a Category 3 storm. As of October 28:

The total estimated insured losses amount to $2,878,981,114.
Total claims: 253,452
Residential property: 202,989
Commercial property: 8,934
Private flood: 1,535 (the majority of flood claims are handled through the National Flood Insurance Program rather than private flood insurance)
The counties with the highest number of reported claims are as follows:

• Hillsborough 52,485
• Pinellas 37,239
• Manatee 26,786
• Sarasota 19,409 Polk 17,294
• Pasco 14,548
• Volusia 12,217
• Lake 10,198
• Orange 9,197
• Lee 7,778

As of now, 19,694 residential property claims have been settled with payment, while 30,623 have been resolved without payment. Among the claims that were closed without payment, 1,504 were attributed to non-covered flood damage, 8,528 were related to damage falling below the deductible, and 20,591 were for various other reasons, such as the customer withdrawing the claim or the insured being unreachable. A total of 25.8% of all claims have been successfully closed.

Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Helene struck the Big Bend region on September 26 as a Category 4 storm. As of October 25,

The total estimated insured losses amount to $1,437,491,638.
Total claims: 127,066
Residential property: 57,415
Commercial property: 3,310
Private flood: 3,799 (the majority of flood claims are handled through the National Flood Insurance Program rather than private flood insurance)
The counties with the most reported claims are as follows:

• Pinellas 44,885
• Hillsborough 16,049
• Pasco 9,225
• Manatee 7,515 Sarasota 6,972 Charlotte 4,902 Duval 3,997
• Lee 2,842
• Suwannee 2,372 Alachua 2,202

As of now, 10,460 residential property claims have been settled with payment, while 19,068 have been resolved without payment. Of the claims closed without payment, 4,065 were due to non-covered flood damage, 4,972 due to damage below the deductible and 10,031due to other reasons (including the customer withdrawing the claim or the insured not being reachable). A total of 41.6% of all claims have been successfully closed.

This article originally appeared on Florida Realtors