In the wake of Hurricane Harvey, and as Hurricane Irma bears down on America,
Marsh hosted a webcast to discuss issues around storm preparation and claims management.
According to James Waller, research meteorologist, from
Guy Carpenter, one of the webcast panel members, the damage expected from Irma will be very different from the experience in Texas and Louisiana from Harvey.
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During Harvey, “the heavy rainfall … caused a lot of water to pile up over a short period of time.” Houston, of course, was particularly hard hit, with up to 12-feet of flooding in some areas. The impact, he said, was “especially severe and historic in nature.”
Irma, on the other hand, will also cause storm surges up the Florida coast and possibly into Georgia and the Carolinas, but most of the predicted damage will come from its more severe wind, Waller said.
The hurricane, already the size of the state of Florida, will likely cause power outages, as well as damage to roofs and building walls, and cause further damage with flying debris – plus possible storm surges of five-10 feet, he said. Between now and the weekend, when it is expected to hit southern Florida, “it will have time to push a lot of water up against the Florida coast.”
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To prepare now, insureds should begin to prep “well-documented” claim data, said Ray Hutnik, global financial advisory services practice leader at Marsh risk consulting.
Well prepared documentation will assist insureds with “maximizing recovery” and “minimizing the length [of time] to recover,” Hutnik said.
Insureds should be considering their records, actual loss sustained, payroll, and the period of indemnity.
Paul McVey, managing director of Marsh’s claim practice, said anticipated business claims would center on business interruptions, contingent business interruptions, inventory losses, and ingress/egress issues with transportation.
Finally, Charlie Martin, US Leader at Marsh’s claim practice, outlined an additional service Marsh has initiated in light of these massive storm events.
“The human side of the disaster is often the most difficult to manage,” he said. “Many of our clients have large concentrations of employees in the path of the hurricanes.”
As such, and to help insured businesses get back on their feet as soon as possible, Marsh has “dedicated claims staff” who can help insureds’ employees prepare claims on their personal home and auto policies, including assisting with the preparation of FEMA claims, if necessary.
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