Joanna Szabo  |  December 10, 2019

Category: Hurricane

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hurricanes are getting strongerAs oceans are getting increasingly warmer, hurricane conditions in high-risk areas may subsequently get more severe—and storms may affect even larger areas than usual.

The official 2019 Atlantic hurricane season came to an end at the end of November. In the last 150 years, 2019 was the eighth most active in named hurricanes.

This hurricane season has so far cost about $13.9 billion in damages all across the Atlantic Basin, and while this is below the projected estimate for the year ($50 billion) scientists are noting that even weaker storms are causing more rainfall. These hurricanes have led to unexpectedly catastrophic damages and costs.

Billions in Damages

According to Chuck Watson, a catastrophe modeler for Enki Research, Tropical Storm Imelda, which hit Texas in September, was one of the weakest storms that made landfall in 2019. However, Imelda also had the most impact, with $2 billion in damages in Texas.

Jeff Masters, a meteorologist and writer for Scientific American, said that slow-moving weather systems that involve hurricane conditions like unexpectedly severe rains “are kind of the harbingers of the future,” referring to the issue of climate change. Storms are consistently setting rainfall records. For instance, Masters noted that Hurricane Barry, which hit the Gulf of Mexico in July, incurred about $1 billion in damage and set an all-time rainfall record in Arkansas.

With these slow-moving storms, more moisture ends up being soaked up from the ever-warming oceans, which in turn leads to more significant rainfall. Extreme rainfall during a storm can lead to severe flooding, property damage, injuries, and even death. An increase in these issues leads to an increase in insurance claims.

On top of the more severe rainfall, some of these storms also worsened in places outside of the usual areas where such storms occur.

“We’re starting to see unusual sort of intensities in unusual places, which is something we would expect to see as the oceans heat up,” Masters said. The far eastern Atlantic saw strong storms this year, and three storms threatened to impact Europe.

Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas saw 185 miles per hour winds, leading to $7 billion in economic losses for the Bahamas. “There has never been a land area, or even open ocean, that was hit harder for a longer period of time than what Dorian did to the northern Bahamas,” said Ryan Truchelut, president of WeatherTiger.

In recent years, the U.S. has seen a slew of devastating, costly storms. Hurricanes Harvey, Florence, Irma, Maria, and Michael have caused significant damage, especially in Florida, the Carolinas, and Texas.

Filing a Hurricane Insurance Claim

Dealing with the damage and facing the associated cost in the aftermath of hurricane conditions can be overwhelming, even if you are covered by insurance. In some cases, if you have already been compensated for some of the damages by your insurance company—and even if you’ve already cashed the check—you may not have been paid in full. For those not already paid, insurance claim delays may have major life impact.

Filing a lawsuit can be a daunting prospect, especially in the wake of the damage caused by a hurricane, so Top Class Actions has laid the groundwork for you by connecting you with an experienced attorney. Consulting an attorney can help you make sure that you receive the full and proper compensation for hurricane damage costs to which you are entitled.

Join a Free Hurricane Insurance Claim Investigation

It is important that you make sure you are properly compensated by your insurance company for the damage caused by Hurricane Dorian. Get help today from experienced insurance claim attorneys. Fill out the form on this page for more information. 

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