Hurricane Insurance for Homeowners Might be Getting More Expensive

April 07, 2011

Living along the coast has its advantages. The nice weather and quick access to beaches provide ample opportunities to relax. However, there are some drawbacks that accompany these perks, especially for those who live along the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricanes and other weather-related events can make living in this region dangerous, and residents need to be prepared in the event of a hurricane. Hurricane insurance is just one part of any hurricane preparation plan.

Many homeowners that live right along the coast have had to deal with the high costs of homeowner's insurance, because these houses receive the entire force of the storm. Recently, more and more hurricanes are continuing to retain their strength when they move inland, so many insurers are now adjusting premiums to reflect this increased risk.

How Insurance Premiums are Calculated

Insurance companies base their coverage costs on the risks associated with the location of the home. To determine which areas are more susceptible to hurricane damage, insurers rely on models which help them estimate the amount of risk associated with each region.

One of the most relied upon models is compiled by Risk Management Solutions, Inc. For years, the RMS model used historical data of the past 100 years to determine the number of hurricanes that would impact a specific region. Recently, the company has started to create forecasts that are based upon a smaller sampler size consisting of current conditions.

RMS will release information on what it feels will be areas that are most likely to receive a catastrophic hurricane. The data is designed to tell insurers which areas will be hit by a one-in-a-hundred-years hurricane. Insurers review this data, and then decide the rates that will be charged to homeowners within that particular region.

Hurricanes generally start to break up or lessen their intensity when they make landfall. However, many hurricanes that occurred within the last five years kept their strength when they hit land. Because the storms remain intact, they are causing much more property damage to homes that are far away from the coast, and insurers have lost money because they did not expect these intense storms to impact homes located so far inland. To cover rising costs, many insurers are raising premiums to cover themselves in the event of a major hurricane, and passing these costs on to homeowners.

Article provided by Clint Brasher Attorney at Law PC
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