Insurance companies have already paid out or agreed to pay $7.7 billion to Louisiana policy holders after 2020’s record hurricane season, the state’s insurance commissioner said.
The state was pounded with three hurricane in 2020 in a year that also saw widespread economic loss from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hurricane Laura hit the state Aug. 27 as a Category 4 storm, followed by Hurricane Delta on Oct. 9 as a Category 2 and Hurricane Zeta on Oct. 28 also as Category 2 storm.
The three storms resulted in 290,847 claims at year end. About 56% were settled by the end of the 2020, the state said.
“After a record storm season that tested the state multiple times, paid claims represent a way forward for those most affected by these hurricanes,” Commissioner Jim Donelon said in a statement. “This is $7.7 billion owed to Louisiana policyholders to rebuild their lives, homes and businesses. Furthermore, it’s billions of dollars that didn’t come from taxpayers in a time when municipal budgets are reeling from the events of the last year.”
Insurers have closed 77% of the claims from Hurricane Laura in August, which produced $6.66 billion in filed claims, 59% resulting in payments, the state said.
Laura accounted for for the "vast majority of damage from the record 2020 hurricane season in Louisiana," Donelon said..
For Hurricane Delta, 82% of all Delta claims have been closed, with 53% of those claims ending in payments of $556 million. Hurricane Zeta in October resulted in $499 million in claims, with 79% closed, 46% resulting in payments.
State figures are not available on how the 2020 claims compared to hurricane damage in previous years.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have data at various intervals from previous storms to be able to make comparisons with the pace of claims resolution from the 2020 hurricanes,” insurance department spokeswoman Becky Mowbray told the Louisiana Record.