Here's the other one without having to login- hopefully Sam Friedman of NU will forgive me for copying it!
Claims Mounting From Nor’easter
BY MARK E. RUQUET
NU Online News Service, April 25, 9:27 a.m. EDT
While the cleanup from last week’s Nor’easter continues, claims adjusters have been evaluating thousands of claims throughout the Eastern seaboard in what insurers agree was a catastrophic event.
Jersey City, N.J.-based Insurance Services Office Inc., which last week declared the Nor’easter a catastrophe, defined as insured loss of at least $25 million affecting a significant number of policyholders, had no update on figures.
In an e-mail, Gary Kerney, assistant vice president, property claim services for ISO, said the event from April 13-17 affected 18 states and the District of Columbia. PCS/ISO is still collecting data and does not have an estimate yet of projected losses.
The nation’s largest personal lines insurer, Bloomington, Ill.-based State Farm, has seen in excess of 7,700 claims in four Eastern states alone, said Dave Phillips, a company spokesman.
He said New Jersey reported the largest number of claims—in excess of 3,980—and that figure is expected to rise to 4,000 or more. The company dispatched its mobile claims center—the first time it has done so since 9/11—to Bound Brook, N.J., which suffered significant flooding.
Upstate New York and the New York City Metropolitan area reported more than 1,800 claims, primarily upstate, he said. Philadelphia and the surrounding five-county Delaware Valley area reported 1,370 claims, and Maine reported a significant number of claims for the state with 630.
The claims covered a lot of water and wind and water issues, said Mr. Phillips, adding that if there is a silver lining out of this event it is that more policyholders purchased flood insurance than in the past.
“People are paying more and more attention to the coverage issues,” he said.
Patrick Breslin, a spokesman for New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Group, the largest insurer in the state, said the company’s most recent count showed 3,056 homeowners reports, including 630 calls for which there was no coverage.
He said there were almost 300 flood claims that were covered by federal flood program insurance and 222 auto claims.
While the figures are not out of the norm for this kind of event, said Mr. Breslin, it is considered a catastrophe by NJM and is the single largest loss event so far this year.
Northbrook, Ill.-based insurer Allstate has declared the event a catastrophe in the Northeast, according to company spokesman Raliegh Floyd. However, it is too early for the company to released any loss data, he said.
http://www.propertyandcasualtyinsurancenews.com/cms/nupc/Breaking+News/2007/04/24-CATFOLLOW-mr |