NU Online News Service, May 29, 3:48 p.m. EDT
Coastal residents are still largely uninformed, unworried and unprepared for a major hurricane, a survey has found.
The Mason-Dixon poll, taken in advance of Monday's hurricane season start, measured preparedness responses from 1,100 coastal residents along the Gulf and Atlantic Coasts up to Maine.
Eighty-three percent of respondents said they have not taken any steps in the past year to make their homes stronger; 66 percent said they have no hurricane survival kit; and 62 percent said they do not feel vulnerable to hurricanes, related tornadoes, or flooding.
Many respondents also lacked knowledge about hurricanes and their insurance coverages. For example, 70 percent of respondents did not know storm surge represents the greatest potential for a large loss of life from a hurricane, and 51 percent still believe masking tape would keep windows from shattering, even though masking tape provides no protective value at all.
On insurance coverages, 49 percent of respondents were not sure if their homeowners insurance requires repairs to be made to prevent further damage before they are compensated for their losses.
Additionally, 48 percent said they do not have a homeowners insurance policy that covers damage caused by a flood, and another 15 percent were not sure if their policy covered flood damage.
The survey showed 22 percent were not sure or not at all confident they had the right type and amount of insurance coverage to rebuild their home as it currently stands. Twenty-one percent did not know their policy number or how to reach their agent or carrier.
Brad Coker of Mason-Dixon Polling & Research said there was a discrepancy in responses from those in hurricane-prone southern states compared to residents of northern Atlantic states. People in more traditional hurricane states also displayed a higher level of knowledge about preparedness, he noted.
However, he said over 30 percent of people in southern states–North Carolina and below–still did not feel vulnerable to hurricanes despite the area being battered by strong hurricanes over this decade.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.