‘Unusual’ Isaias Brings Winds, Downed Trees But Fewer Claims Than Expected in Florida

Lots of trees and fences down, some roof damage to homes, businesses and vehicles, and flooding and tornadoes in parts of western North Carolina.

But overall, the insured losses from Hurricane Isaias, which made landfall in the Florida Panhandle Friday night, are shaping up to be less than feared—and about one-tenth as costly as 2018’s Hurricane Michael, a Category 5 storm that hit east of where Isaias came ashore.

Michael cost insurers about $9 billion in Florida claims in 2018, or about $12 billion in today’s dollars.

“So, about a tenth of that would make Isaias a billion-dollar storm,” said Melissa Burt DeVriese, president of Florida-domiciled Security First Insurance. She based her numbers partly on estimates from Karen Clark & Co., the hurricane modeling and analytics firm.

Official claims numbers had not yet been reported Monday by the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The office has given insurers two deadlines: Tuesday, Oct. 13 and Thursday, Oct. 15, to report claims data using the simplified catastrophe reporting form.

Isaias was the latest first-hurricane of the Atlantic season when it came ashore as a Category 2 hurricane near the resort city of Destin, Florida. Weather services and local officials had expected the Destin area to take the brunt of the wind and storm surge since it was in the path of the eastern eyewall, which historically has proven to be where the strongest winds and surge are found.

But the storm, which had spun up unexpectedly in the Gulf of Mexico early last week, brought its highest recorded winds—117 mph—to the Pensacola area, along with relatively small storm surge. News reports suggested that rare “sting jet” winds may have played a role, sending violent gusts along the western side of the eye, but from the north, helping to tamp down storm surge in the Gulf and nearby bay and sound.

Downed trees knocked out power to more than 670,000 customers in Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi, according to news reports. Four people died in the storm, from falling trees or unventilated generators.

But damage and claims reported by insureds have been relatively modest in number and severity, insurance carrier representatives, agents and adjusters said Monday.

“So much of what we have seen has been below the deductible,” said Matt Mercier, national director of community associations for CBIZ, an insurance brokerage that handles a number of condo properties near Pensacola.

Insurance carrier executives and claims managers gathered at an insurance claims village in Destin Monday morning. But with so few policyholders showing up, they moved on to Pensacola by early afternoon. At the Pensacola insurance hub on the campus of the University of West Florida, 14 carriers set up mobile claims-handling spots, alongside representatives from the Florida Department of Financial Services.

But few clients stopped by.

People’s Trust Insurance was there and had seen just over 400 claims in the Panhandle region, out of about 8,000 insureds, said Carlos Martinez, director of catastrophe operations for the Florida-based insurer. Universal Property & Casualty Insurance representatives said the company had fielded about 3,000 claims on about 20,000 policies in the region.

Security First reported about 300 claims by Monday afternoon, out of about 15,000 policies in force in the Panhandle area. Only about five of those were considered to have severe levels of damage.

“It was a smaller hurricane. But it’s not a small thing if it’s your house that gets hit by a tree,” said DeVriese. “That’s why we’re here. We have to be here for our clients.”

DeVriese and six members of the Security First team showed up Monday to look at the damage to policyholder Lisa Cook’s home on the north side of Pensacola Monday. A tree had fallen through the roof, causing damage to the roof structure and the attic. The Cooks reported the claim promptly and said they had an adjuster, a roofing company and tarp in place within 24 hours.

Others in the area reported that a few insureds have said that a roofing companies and public adjusters—wearing the roof firm’s shirt and logo—have been knocking on doors, promising that carriers will pay full replacement costs.

“I said, ‘Shoo them away. Let’s check with your insurance company first on what’s covered,'” said Kelly Siler, who co-owns the Siler Insurance Agency on U.S. Highway 29 in Pensacola.

Although the Siler agency office was still without electrical service Monday, three days after the tempest passed, the owners were on site, ready to assist policyholders. And before the storm hit, the Silers had posted claims phone numbers on their front window for all the carriers the agency is appointed with.

“We also have paper files on all insureds, so we can help them even with the power and the computers down—we’re old school!” Siler said.

Mary Jordan, owner of Gulf Coast Insurance agency in Pensacola, said she had heard from relatively few policyholders. Her own home, on a peninsula that juts into a bay, escaped damage. But the boat house and some rental property saw considerable roof damage.

“Yes, we have dwelling-fire coverage” on the rental property, Jordan said.

Perhaps the areas of damage that had people around town buzzing about the most were just outside Pensacola. At Portofino Island Resort, a massive, high-rise condominium complex on Pensacola Beach, lost many of its windows during the winds of Isaias.

Drone video posted on social media showed bedrooms in two towers now exposed to the elements, with plate-glass windows and doors completely vanished. One insurance broker said it was surprising that the windows had blown out, but it was unclear if the towers had been built with hurricane-resistant windows.

Portofino management and the resort’s insurance agents could not be reached for comment Monday. On its website, the management company said that new guest arrivals had been suspended.

Northeast of Pensacola, the city of Milton also saw significant winds during the storm, up to 110 mph. The Milton High School gymnasium had much of its roof damaged. And a huge section of roof was lifted off a nearby apartment complex. The Milton Quick Stop convenience store and gas station suffered heavy damage, according to social media and local news reports.

Isaias was deemed more damaging than Hurricane Sally, which hit the area in 2020, but less than Hurricane Ivan, which caused widespread destruction in 2004, Keith Siler noted.

The sounds of generators and chain saws could still be heard in Pensacola late Monday evening.

Top photo: A collapsed porch at a home in central Pensacola. (IJ photo)