Now we stand at the beginning of the next hurricane season.Predictions of the season's intensity abound, but as the experienceof the last decade will tell you, those predictions are of littlevalue.

Here's one prediction I'm willing to make: whenever it comes,the next hurricane will bring more than high winds and plenty ofclaims.

For the insurance industry, the lasting legacy of former FloridaGov. Charlie Crist isn't just the anti-insurer legislation passedduring his tenure (especially since Florida has had the goodfortune of six years with no storms, and responsible legislatorsused that breathing room to successfully reverse some of thosemistakes). Crist's real legacy is the populist environment hecreated, which made it easy and politically rewarding to depictinsurance companies as enemies of the people.

Even now, during this time of no storms, a backlash hasnot-so-quietly been building. During deliberations on no-fault autoinsurance in the 2012 Florida Legislative Session, more than onelegislator referred to the problems in the property insurancemarket as reasons not to trust insurers. One prominent Senator evendescribed insurers as having “no soul.” More recently, severallegislators have issued public letters condemning Citizens PropertyInsurance Corp.'s attempt to reduce its liabilities by way of rateincreases and coverage restrictions.

All these condemnations usually come with a healthy dose ofindignation that holds insurers responsible for abandoning “thepeople” in the first place. Never do these declarations recognizethe complexity of the problem, or the willingness of insurers to bepart of the solution.

Mark my words, when the hurricane comes, the wind will not stopblowing before the blame starts flowing, and you [carriers], myfriends, are at the bottom of the hill.

The question is not how the insurance industry will respond, buthow your company will differentiate itself and preserve thecredibility of your brand among policyholders, agents, regulators,and legislators.

During those years that I helped lead the responseto Crist's assault on the insurance industry, I also had theopportunity to visit many of those insurers in the crosshairs. Thepeople I met were proud of their company's performance during thosedifficult times. Oftentimes, they directed me to bulletin boardswhere numerous, heartfelt letters of thanks from policyholders weredisplayed to motivate the team and provide real-world evidence ofthe good work being done. But those good stories never seemed tomake it off the bulletin boards. Some insurers were uncomfortabletelling their own story. Some didn't know how.

Insurers work overtime on disaster preparedness and response.Emergency adjusters, sophisticated mobile claims adjusting units,colocation facilities for data backup… even contingency operationsbunkers capable of withstanding F5 tornadoes all figure into acomprehensive plan for delivering on the commitment topolicyholders.

As the next hurricane season looms, insurers should be just asprepared for the public and political repercussions sure to followa storm making landfall.