Homeowners in Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia won't have to pay "hurricane deductibles" on insurance claims stemming from Superstorm Sandy since officials contend that the deductibles weren't triggered because Sandy was not classified as a hurricane when it made landfall (see news story, p. 6).
As a veteran forensic meteorologist, I have worked on numerous hurricane-related lawsuits and insurance claims of this sort, whether the weather system was a "named storm" or not. In the past, terms like "hurricane-force," "tropical storm" and even "remnants of Hurricane X" have been significant issues and arguable topics when it comes to litigation or determining coverage from claims that arise. It appears this could be the case with Sandy as well.
This will be a hotly debated topic for insurance-company executives and also the attorneys that represent both insurance companies and homeowners. As a meteorologist, it is my job to study the detailed weather records and data in order to provide opinions in a true, scientifically based and unbiased manner.
The fact is, Sandy did indeed have hurricane-force winds when it made landfall. The National Hurricane Center issued an advisory update at 8 p.m. EDT on Oct. 29 stating "Surface…radar…and Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter Aircraft data indicate that Post-Tropical Cyclone Sandy made landfall near Atlantic City, N.J. around 8:00 p.m. EDT…0000 UTC…with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph…130 kmh."
As those in the industry know, hurricane-force winds are defined as being 74 miles per hour or faster. Clearly, Sandy had winds that exceeded minimum hurricane force when the storm made landfall. However, the storm was technically not a "tropical" system anymore and was deemed "post-tropical" before it made landfall. Adding to the confusion is the fact that the National Hurricane Center was still issuing statements on this storm and referring to it as "Post-Tropical Cyclone Sandy."
Homeowners' deductibles typically range from 1-5 percent of the home's insured value. This means, for example, with a 5-percent deductible, if a home was insured for $400,000, then the homeowner would have to pay $20,000. In the wake of the enormous damage that was inflicted by Sandy, this would be very significant to many homeowners.
Based on my experience in the other hurricane-related cases for which I have consulted, some of the questions that will be debated include:
- Was Sandy a named storm at the time of landfall even though it was Post-Tropical Cyclone Sandy at landfall?
- Will named-storm deductibles or hurricane deductibles apply in this case because winds were still 80 miles per hour (hurricane force) at landfall?
- If Sandy had 80-mph hurricane-force winds near Atlantic City when it made landfall, does that mean that hurricane-force winds also occurred at a homeowners' location 40 miles away, or were they much less? Additionally, would a hurricane deductible or named-storm deductible apply at that specific address?
In one case I worked on as a forensic meteorologist, severe river flooding ensued as a result of the "remnants" of a tropical storm. Because the rainstorm was being referred to as the "remnants of Tropical Storm X" by the National Weather Service specifically for tracking purposes only, the insurance company argued that the reference to the actual name remnants of Tropical Storm X made it a "named" storm. However, the system was no longer a tropical depression, tropical storm or hurricane. Therefore, technically it was not a named storm—but it was a hotly debated topic.
I suspect there might be similar debates in the years to come as insurers, attorneys and homeowners try to collect on their claims for property damages that were suffered by this powerful, destructive weather event.
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