Trump OKs individual FEMA assistance for eight Florida counties hit by Isaias

President Donald Trump has approved the DeSantis administration’s request that the Federal Emergency Management Agency provide individual assistance to eight counties in the Florida Panhandle that suffered damage from Hurricane Iasias.

Trump approved the request for individual FEMA assistance for people in Bay, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Walton, and Washington counties, according to a statement released by the federal agency.

Individuals who sustained losses in those counties should file claims with their insurance carriers before applying for federal assistance, according to the FEMA press statement.

To that end, Florida Office of Insurance Regulation data show that as of Tuesday, 62,295 claims totaling more than $652.2 million had been filed with insurers following the Oct. 9 landfall of Isaias, a Category 2 hurricane that made landfall in Destin.

Claims stemming from residential property losses account for the majority, or $599.9 million. Residential property is a broad umbrella category that includes homeowners, mobile homeowners, and commercial residential.

Claims for damage to commercial properties total $19.1 million. Private passenger automobile insurance claims also are accounted for in the OIR information, constituting $21.7 million.

Inside look at the insurance claims

Of the 62,295 filed claims, 4,292 were open and the policyholders had received some form of payment from their insurance carriers. A far greater number of claims, 33,368, remained open and no payment had been made.

Another 9,293 claims had been closed by the insurer after some payment had been made, and 15,342 claims were closed by the insurance company without payment.

OIR indicates that “common reasons” claims are closed without a payment include those in which the total damage doesn’t exceed the policy deductible, or claims for flood coverage not included in standard homeowners’ coverage. Claims can also be closed without payment, the OIR website says, if the insurance company cannot contact the insured and the adjudication process cannot be completed.

In all, the OIR website shows that 39.5% of the claims have been closed, a figure that represents those closed without any payment and those closed with payments.

Trump approves Hurricane Isaias disaster relief 12 days after it was made

Meanwhile, Santa Rosa County leads the state among counties with the most Isaias-related claims, with 29,463 filed, followed by Escambia (19,274), Okaloosa (5,859), Walton (2,3490), and Bay (2,259) counties.

The president earlier in the week approved for FEMA to provide assistance to repair public roads, bridges, buildings, and other infrastructure to 15 counties.

The release didn’t say how much Trump had approved for FEMA public assistance but the DeSantis administration submitted a request for $237 million.