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

Mother Nature Sounds the Alarm for Colorado's Summer Storm Season with Last Week's Storms Adding Up to An Estimated $70 Million in Insured Damage.

June 4, 2010 – The first major Colorado hail and wind storm of 2010 carries an estimated insurance price tag of $70 million resulting from approximately 13,600 auto and homeowners insurance claims filed since baseball-sized hail and high winds caused widespread damage to vehicles and homes around Brighton, Commerce City and other communities in the northeast metro area, as well as some damage in Pueblo. This is a preliminary estimate that may change as people continue to file claims.

"This storm is just round one of severe weather season in Colorado, as we enter into what is really considered the peak hail and tornado months of June and July," says Carole Walker, Executive Director of the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association. "It's much like a tornado siren warning us to take steps to protect ourselves and our personal property. NOW is the time to consider impact resistant roofing to protect property and consider how much insurance coverage you have to fix your car, repair or rebuild your home and replace your personal belongings."

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

Visuals & story ideas:

• Some companies have set up drive through claims centers to make it easier for drivers to have their auto claims adjusted on the spot.
• 2009's massive damage to roofs resulted in many homeowners installing impact resistant roofs that will likely help them avoid a claim in the coming years.

Mother Nature made state history last year with the most costly severe weather season adding up to more than $1.4 billion in insured damage and one July storm ranking as the state's most expensive insured disaster in actual insurance claims paid out with insured losses totaling $768 million in claims resulting from damage to vehicles and homes. The updated damage estimate makes it the most expensive catastrophe season in Colorado, topping a 45-minute hail storm that caused $625 million in damage on July 11, 1990.

Colorado's Most Costly Hail Storms
With the exception of the May 22, 2008 Windsor tornado and the hailstorm that hit Pueblo on July 29, 2009, Colorado's ten most costly hailstorms were centered in the Denver Metro area (which makes sense, because that's where the largest concentration of property in the state is located).

*2009 estimated cost calculations based on the Consumer Price Index.

RMIIA recommends that you take these preventative steps:

SELECT IMPACT RESISTANT ROOFING

• Your roof is the most vulnerable part of your home, so when building a new home or replacing your roof consider using impact-resistant roofing products. Most insurance companies also either surcharge or only offer a percentage deductible for wood shake or non-impact resistant roofs. When hail destroys roof coverings, it also leads to water damage to your ceilings, walls, floors, appliances and personal possessions.

• The insurance industry has an impact resistant roofing Underwriters Laboratory standard ranking, the UL 2218 standard. The standard has four impact-level designations that will help you compare products. Roof coverings that show the most resistance earn a Class 4 rating; the least, a Class 1 rating.

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.

• Hail and flood damage to your car is covered only if you have purchased optional comprehensive insurance on your auto policy.

• 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 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. Free home inventory software or a sample home inventory: http://www.rmiia.org/Homeowners/Walking_Through_Your_Policy/Home_Inventory.asp

For more consumer information on insurance topics logon to 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.