By Hassell Wealth Management

Although we wrote this article in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which made landfall on August 29, 2021, many elements of the article will hopefully help you understand the steps to take when we face storms in the future.

Key Resources from the Louisiana Department of Insurance

The Louisiana Department of Insurance’s After the Storm Resources page offers wonderful context and links to resources that you may find helpful regardless of your stage in the recovery process.

We encourage you to explore these resources as they address topics such as mitigation strategies immediately following a storm, filing a claim, working with your insurance company and adjuster, and working with contractors in the rebuilding phase.

If you want to do a deeper dive, the Louisiana Department of Insurance Post-Disaster Insurance Guide offers comprehensive guidance on handling the aftermath of a hurricane.

Building Back

Navigating the ins and outs of reconstruction following a major storm can feel overwhelming. It’s important to take your time in locating reputable companies to handle the work and ensure that the work is done to appropriate standards.

Always try to obtain bids in writing from at least three different contractors.
Do not sign contracts without receiving, reviewing, and approving a bid.
Once you approve a bid, make sure you have a copy with all signatures.
Many salespeople for out-of-town contractors flood the streets after storms, getting storm victims to sign contracts when they have no idea what they are signing.
Make sure any contractor you consider is licensed, bonded, and insured in the state of Louisiana.
- Click here to do an online search for Louisiana contractor licenses, or text 1-855-999-7896.
Require that the contractor show proof of liability insurance.
Never pay money for the job in advance, and do not make final payment until you are satisfied with the job.
Never use cash. Credit cards may add protection.
Keep all receipts and invoices for insurance reimbursement.
Take before, during, and after pictures of the repair as it progresses to completion.

Consider Your Roof!

The roof is probably the single largest expense of a home, and without a good one, you won’t have a home for very long. Many homes looked relatively good after Hurricane Ida, only for the homeowners to discover the storm forced its way into their houses through roofs that failed due to poor installation.

It is imperative to have your roof inspected for damage after a storm even if it looks OK because a professional may find serious damage not visible to the untrained eye.

When you are rebuilding:

Make sure that the roofing company follows the installation requirements to preserve any manufacturer warranty on the shingles.
- Following these requirements can make the difference between success and failure in a future storm.
- For example, Miami Dade County shingles must be installed using six nails. Some roofing companies will cut corners and install these shingles with fewer than six nails. Regardless of the type of shingle, if it is not properly installed, your home is not properly protected.
Always ask about any warranty the installer may provide on workmanship, and if feasible, consider working with a local company for the install.
- It is all too common that installers use inferior materials or do not follow high-wind-area installation methods, such as using enough nails.
Hire local. You can increase the odds of better workmanship since the company will act to preserve its reputation in your community.
- Out-of-town companies have less skin in the game. Should issues arise, you may find it challenging to work with the companies once they have returned to their respective states.

Be Patient and Diligent with Insurance—It May Save You Money!

While handling the aftermath of a disaster is difficult and stressful, it is important to stay patient and vigilant with your insurance carrier and adjuster. File your claim ASAP. Hopefully, you will be made whole without the need for hiring a public adjuster or attorney, and it is imperative to let your insurance company respond to your claim before doing so.

Your insurance company is mandated to respond to your claim and make payment within a relatively short time frame. There are stiff penalties, fines, and fees for bad actions by insurance companies. Your insurance policy should have specific and detailed processes for handling the aftermath of a storm and claim for damages.

Once insurance pays you, cash the check! Your mortgage company may need to endorse your claim and will have its own process for distributing funds to ensure repairs are made. Cashing the first insurance check does not accept finality of settlement. Initial checks will often cover the cost of the most important repairs, such as a roof, doors, and windows.

Keep filing supplemental claims until you are made whole. If you disagree with your adjuster’s findings, appeal to the insurance company. In addition, have your contractor draw up repair estimates and submit them to the insurance company for reconsideration. This is also important if the repair cost is different than accounted for, which was a major issue for Hurricane Laura victims who experienced record-high lumber prices due to COVID-19 shortages.

Use up all avenues for working out a satisfactory settlement with insurance on your own before hiring help for a fee. Some unscrupulous attorneys and public adjusters will try to convince you to hire them prematurely, promising higher payouts while taking large commissions and fees on portions of your claim you could have received without their help.

It would be unwise to pay a third party a large percentage of the undisputed portion of your claim that you otherwise would have received without hiring them. Unfortunately, some storm victims may need to hire an attorney and/or public adjuster for a dispute surrounding:

Denial of claims
Disagreement between insurer responsibility, such as homeowner’s and flood insurance
Disagreement with claim settlement amount

A Special Note About Deductibles

If you suffered damage, many companies likely approached you following the storm to offer roof repair work, water mitigation, and other services. Many of these companies request that the homeowner pay them the deductible amount.

Be advised that this is not a requirement and, in fact, is discouraged by many insurance companies. We had insurance companies specifically advise us to pay nothing, and all companies we worked with complied with this request.

When unsure, lean on your insurance company for guidance, and ultimately your own judgment.

Chances are, you may have a large hurricane deductible. You are not required to pay this amount out of pocket before receiving funds from your insurance company. The insurance company will simply reduce your settlement amount by the amount of the deductible.

Depending on the size of your claim, this may ultimately require you to come up with the deductible amount to pay other parties like contractors, but you will not have to physically pay the deductible before you are awarded a settlement.

Even if your repairs are minor and not enough to meet your deductible, you should file a claim anyway. An insurance adjuster is a professional and may find significant hidden damage. Unlike many insurance claims, filing a claim on your home’s insurance due to an Act of God has no repercussions.

Insurance rates may likely increase in the future, but they will do so by class, not because you filed a claim individually. Remember, your hurricane deductible is based on the calendar year’s full hurricane season, not individual storms, so payments made from one disaster could reduce your deductible amount required in a future storm.

Other Helpful Warnings and Tips Following Natural Disasters

Scammers commonly use natural disasters to prey upon people who are not thinking clearly. In the days following the storm, we received numerous “urgent” text messages and calls designed to get our attention. While we’d received scam calls pre-storm, the frequency and tactics used went into overdrive following the storm. Remain diligent.

Chances are, if you file a claim, you will be contacted by phone numbers unknown to you. If you’re like many people, you may decline unknown calls by default, assuming the calls are spam. Odds are, though, at least some of those calls are legitimate (and highly important).

Consider pausing your rule on not answering unknown numbers so that you can have timely communication with your insurance company, adjusters, and other related parties.

When signing contracts to mitigate damage (like tarping services or water mitigation), avoid signing an assignment of benefits (AOB). The Louisiana Department of Insurance warns against this, but nevertheless, many contracts contain an AOB.

Signing an AOB assigns a portion of or all your insurance proceeds to the company doing the work, depending on the scope of services they will provide. This creates a situation where you have less control over your repairs, and those who performed the work will get the entirety of your insurance check even if the cost of completing the job is less than the amount of the repairs estimated by your insurance company.

An unscrupulous contractor may sell you on it by saying, “We’ll take whatever insurance pays,” effectively bidding the repair to exactly what insurance pays without merit to the actual cost of the repair. By all indications, a statement of work is customary, and no payment upfront should be required in most cases.

Key Considerations If You Did Not Suffer Property Damage

Given damage claims and insurance may be top of mind at the moment, now would be a good time to review your homeowner’s insurance policy to make sure it has all the coverages you hoped it would. Sometimes, it can be easy to forget what insurance coverages you have, especially when you don’t have a mortgage company requiring you to have insurance.

Finally, consider filing a claim even if your repairs are minor and not enough to meet your deductible. Remember, your hurricane deductible is based on the calendar year’s full hurricane season, not individual storms, so payments made from one disaster could reduce your deductible amount required in a future storm.

Preparing for the Next Storm

Fortunately, it’s not often that a storm of Ida’s magnitude makes a direct hit to our community, but in the aftermath of such a storm, it can be helpful to think through what you would do differently if you had to do it all over again:

Would you evacuate next time? If so, to where?
Consider making an at-home checklist that is unique to your living situation, containing all the things you need to do to prepare. A checklist takes the weight off having to remember the details. It can be a blessing in high-stress situations like major storm preparation, when your thoughts may be scattered.
- Click here for a sample plan for printing.
- Click here for detailed advice on planning for disasters.
Make sure you have enough of the following to last you three or more days:
- Water—fill tubs and empty containers
- Gas
- Nonperishable food
- Medications
- Cash
- Batteries
Do you know what insurance coverages you have (and don’t have)?
- Keep in mind that neither your homeowner’s policy nor your renter’s policy covers flood damage; a homeowner or a tenant would need a flood insurance policy to replace property damaged by a flood.
- Review your homeowner’s insurance policy to make sure it has all the coverages you expect, including coverage for mold, evacuation living expenses, and how your deductible is calculated.
Gather important insurance policy numbers, contact numbers, and email addresses.
Come up with a plan for communication without cell or internet service.
- Drive out of the area to find cell service; travel to less affected areas, usually west of where the storm made landfall. Utilities may be damaged for many miles to the north and east of the storm’s path.
- Find local emergency Wi-Fi hot spots.
- Follow local government, law enforcement, and news organizations on social media for up-to-the-minute updates.
- If a storm is imminent, coordinate with friends or family in unaffected areas before losing power. Have them make calls and emails on your behalf.

Additionally, if you have a whole home generator, make sure you have a service contract to ensure your generator will be up and running through the entirety of the power outage caused by the storm.

During Hurricane Ida, we witnessed firsthand that if homeowners did not have a service contract on their generator, the local generator companies were unable to service their generator. The companies’ priority was those with service contracts.

We also suggest you learn how to change the oil in your generator in case the service company cannot get to you in time, as it is recommended you service your whole home generator every 100 hours and turn off the generator for a few hours each day.

Make sure to have spare oil, filters, and other consumable items that will be hard to come by in an emergency. Also, keep carbon monoxide alarms wherever you are sleeping. Carbon monoxide cannot be detected by smell and can be lethal.

Additional Information You May Find Useful

We hope that this article can serve as a useful resource to deal with the current storm and be better prepared for the next one. Major storms can impact many aspects of life, not the least of which is financial.

If you are a client of our Houma, LA fiduciary financial planning firm and need a refresher on how your financial plan may be affected, let us know. If you do not have a financial plan and want clarity about the road ahead in your financial life, schedule a 30-minute discovery call with one of our Wealth Advisors to learn more about how we can help.