Remembering Hurricane Ian
On September 27th 2022, when Hurricane Ian made landfall in Western Cuba, Floridians were cautious but largely unfazed. Yes, Cuba lost power throughout the whole island, but it was only a Category 3 at this point. Sure, a Category 3 is intense, but nothing Florida can’t handle.
The next morning, many Floridians woke up to the news that Ian had intensified into a Category 4 overnight. The Waffle Houses in the storm's path were closed; now Florida residents really knew that we had a beast on our hands.
Hurricane Ian came roaring through at 3:05 PM on September 28th, 2022, and has left a lasting impact that people are still talking about years later.
It resulted in 161 casualties: 5 in Cuba, 150 in Florida, 5 in North Carolina, and even 1 in Virginia. It caused $ 112 billion in damage, much of it in Florida. In a rare moment of partisan unity, former President Joe Biden and Ron DeSantis stood side by side as they promised to rebuild Florida.
“We’re not leaving until this gets done,” Biden said beside DeSantis.
Major Insurers had other plans. Hurricane Ian caused a mass exodus of leading insurance firms from Florida. Six insurers became insolvent in 2022, and many more left the state. Progressive, AAA, and Farmers all significantly scaled back underwriting. The ones that remained in Florida had more than enough on their plate.
Reflecting on Hurricane Ian, an insurance industry insider told me, “Hurricane Ian devastated the area, and to me, it was both traumatic and rewarding, because we saw the devastation and how it affected people's livelihoods. We went to a lot of people’s homes, and knowing we wrote the correct policy with the right coverage meant we could make those people whole. Although the whole process was not something I would want to go through again, I knew we were gonna be able to get those people back to a place where they were gonna be okay financially, and that their lives were gonna continue on. “
As we approach the next hurricane season, schedule a call ahead of time with your insurance agent to make sure you are fully covered.