Factors that Have Triggered Hikes in Georgia Home Insurance Rates: Climate and Roofing Fraud
Georgia Home Insurance Rates: Climate and Roofing Fraud
Homeowners in Georgia are having a tough go in the last few years. In the recent past, home insurance rates in Georgia have increased by leaps and bounds and two factors that have largely triggered these hikes are the state’s peculiar climate and a flurry of roofing frauds. A discussion below delves into the curious interplay of these two natural and human-induced factors and how each has influenced the upward climb of the insurance rates.
Effect of Georgia’s Climate on Home Insurance Rates
Georgia’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico leads to the formation of many tropical cyclones and hurricanes in the state. The latter usually unleashes heavy rains that often cause floods, hurricane-force winds, and tropical storms especially in the southwestern parts of the state. Georgia is also battered by tornadoes every year; in fact, the state reports one of the highest incidents of tornadoes every year in the United States. The southwestern and the northern regions of the state are most prone to these natural catastrophes.
The prevalence of such a climate naturally (excuse the pun) causes more homeowners to file for their claims and this in turn, compels insurers to hike home insurance rates. These rates in Georgia are thus higher than those charged in many other states.
Additionally, Georgia homeowners have had to endure another round of hike last year when home insurance rates were hiked by an average 18 percent in 11 states across the country. The year 2011 saw an almost unprecedented number of natural disasters strike the southeast and the Midwest regions of America. These natural catastrophes caused billions of dollars worth of property damage and insurers had to pay more in damages than they earned from their policies.
Homeowners in Georgia certainly are seeing Mother Nature’s fury! And they still have to contend with man’s unscrupulousness.
Effect of Roofing Fraud in Georgia on Home Insurance Rates
The prevalence of severe weather and especially hailstorms has sown ideas in the minds of certain dishonest roofers! After periods of hailstorms, these roofers show up at people’s doorsteps and dupe them into believing that their roofs have suffered severe damage and need a fix. These roofers also offer to help homeowners have the cost of a repair or a replacement covered by their insurers.
Many hailstorm-harried homeowners fall for the claims made by these sham roofing companies. These roofers however, do not inform homeowners that they have to shell out a deductible for the repair or the replacement job and they may lose a discount or have to cough up higher premiums on their insurance policies. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, such instances are on a rise in Georgia. The result is that the number of claims for roofing damage skyrocket and insurers ultimately, raise the rates on home insurance policies.
It seems that Georgia homeowners are indeed unfortunate to be at the receiving end of both Mother Nature’s furies and man’s machinations. Their only way of preventing further hikes in insurance rates is to bolster their houses so that these can withstand natural catastrophes and insuring that they are not taken in by roofing scams and other iniquitous people.
For more information about or to read up on claim frequency in the state of Georgia, please visit our Georgia Homeowners: Do you know your claim frequeny?.