NU Online News Service, April 25, 2:47 p.m. EST
The end to wet weather conditions in Texas could mean trouble for those fighting wildfires.
Additionally, though it may have helped in battling fires, recent weather is also to blame for thousands of claims in the Lone Star State, says State Farm.
The state got some rain and humid conditions last week, but hot temperatures, low humidity, and wind are predicted to return.
The National Weather Service is warning of accidental ignitions, which could grow quickly. Some rain could come, but not enough. Much of the state is suffering from extreme drought conditions, made worse by dried out heavy growth from above-normal precipitation a year ago, NWS says.
Hundreds of homes and nearly two million acres have already been burned.
State Farm says it received 89 homeowners claims, as of April 22, from the fires, including 59 from Possum Kingdom Lake, a resort area with expensive homes.
Mark Hanna, spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas, says insured losses for the homes and vehicles lost in the Possum Kingdom wildfire have been estimated at $150 million.
Jerry Davies, spokesman for Farmers Insurance, part of the Zurich Insurance Group, says the insurer has received 25 fire related claims, as much of the area burned has been acreage, or rural areas where the insurer does not have a lot of policyholders.
To the east, a storm on Sunday pelted Abilene, Texas with hail the size of baseballs.
State Farm spokeswoman Patti Kelly says the insurer currently has 676 homeowners claims and 470 automobile claims from the area.
Recent hail April 23-25 in the Dallas/Forth Worth area has caused about 1,715 homeowners claims and 1,324 auto claims, says State Farm.
Hail damage cost State Farm $3.2 billion in losses in 2010, and Texas was second only to Illinois in hail claims. Last year hail damage generated about 36,000 claims in Texas, with an average cost of $9,427 per claim, the company says.
According to Highline Data the top writers of personal property insurance in Texas in 2010 were State Farm, with a 28.9 percent market share, followed by Allstate (12.5 percent), Zurich Insurance Group (12.4 percent), USAA Group (7.7 percent), and Liberty Mutual Insurance Group (5.2 percent).
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