RMIIA News Releases

7951 E. Maplewood Avenue, Suite 110
Greenwood Village, Colorado 80111
Serving Colorado, New Mexico, Utah & Wyoming

Contact: Carole Walker, Executive Director
303-790-0216 or toll free 800-355-9524

Windsor Tornado One Year Later: Final Insurance Costs for Cars and Homes Damaged in Last May's Windsor Tornado Add Up to $193.5 Million in Auto & Homeowners Insurance Claims Paid Out.

May 19, 2009 – The tornado that devastated the community of Windsor on May 22nd of last year added up to an estimated $193.5 million dollars in insured damage from approximately 24,000 auto and homeowner claims—making it Colorado's most expensive tornado. The final damage total went up by about $46.5 million from an earlier damage estimate of $147 million since most claims are now settled and those affected by the tornado and hail typically have one year to file insurance claims. This estimate does not include commercial claims from businesses.

Prior to this storm, all of Colorado's most costly storms occurred in the Denver-metro area (which makes sense, because that's where the largest concentration of property in the state is located).

Colorado's Top Ten Most Costly Storms:

1. $625 million insured hail damage: July 11, 1990.
2. $276.7 million insured hail damage: June 13-14, 1984.
3. $225 million insured hail damage: October 1, 1994.
4. $193.5 million insured tornado and hail damage in Windsor: May 22, 2008.
5. $146.5 million insured hail damage: June 8-9, 2004.
6. $128 million insured hail damage: August 11, 1997.
7. $122 million in insured hail damage: May 22, 1996.
8. $100 million in insured hail damage: May 30 - June 2, 1991.
9. $93.3 million insured damage from heavy snow and ice: March 18-19, 2003.
10. $87.8 million insured hail damage: October 16, 1998.

For more information: http://www.rmiia.org/Catastrophes_and_Statistics/tornado.asp

The One-Year Anniversary of the Windsor Tornado is a Wake-Up Call to Check Insurance
The majority of residents were able to rebuild their homes and repair damage because most had insurance coverage, but it is a vivid reminder that the unthinkable can occur in an instant and homeowners should check their policies to help make sure they have the protection they need when they need it the most.

"We are in severe weather season in Colorado when tornadoes, damaging hail and flooding most often occur and with very little warning," says Carole Walker, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. "Now is the time to be thinking about how much insurance coverage you have to repair or rebuild your home and replace your personal belongings."

RMIIA recommends that you take these preventative steps:

DO AN ANNUAL INSURANCE CHECK-UP

• Insurance is something most people don't even want to think about until they need it the most. But, understanding what is and isn't covered in your homeowners' insurance policy can mean the difference of being able to rebuild your home and replace your personal belongings. Homeowners need to do annual insurance policy "check-ups" to make sure they keep up with local building costs and have adjusted their coverage to include home remodeling and additions.

• If you don't have replacement coverage, consider spending a few extra dollars for coverage that pays for the cost of replacing the damaged property without deduction for depreciation.

KNOW WHAT IS & ISN'T COVERED

• The typical homeowners' insurance policy covers damage resulting from fire, windstorm, hail, water damage (excluding flooding), riots and explosion as well as other causes of loss, such as theft and the extra cost of living elsewhere while the structure is being repaired or rebuilt.

• Your policy also covers your legal liability (up to policy limits) if you, members of your family or even your pets hurt other people or their property, not just in your house, but away from it, as well. If you have a lot of assets to protect, you may want to consider an umbrella policy that offers increased protection against lawsuits.

• The standard policy does not cover flooding, so you may want to look into flood insurance coverage if you're concerned that you're at risk for rising floodwaters.

CREATE A HOME INVENTORY

• Make a home inventory that includes lists, pictures or a videotape of the contents of your home or apartment. After all, would you be able to remember all the possessions you've accumulated over the years if they were destroyed by a tornado or fire? Having an up-to-date home inventory will help get your insurance claim settled faster, verify losses for your income tax return and help you purchase the correct amount of insurance.

• It's easy to get overwhelmed, but RMIIA now has free software that you can download to help simplify the process! You can even add digital photos and scan in receipts, along with your room-by-room online inventory. Log on to www.rmiia.org for free home inventory software or a sample home inventory.

For more consumer information on insurance topics visit www.rmiia.org.

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Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association is a non-profit consumer information organization. Affiliated with the Insurance Information Institute, RMIIA has been serving consumers and the media since 1952.