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Deltona insurance agent warns homeowners to verify replacement cost and wind deductibles, avoid signing AOBs
Summary
At a Deltona preparedness event, insurance agent Mel Hines told homeowners to confirm replacement-cost values, check percentage wind-and-hail deductibles, consider raising non-hurricane deductibles to reduce premiums, and be cautious about assignment-of-benefits contracts and door-to-door contractors.
Mel Hines, a Deltona insurance agent, urged homeowners at a city hurricane-preparedness event to check their homeowner policies now, before a storm. "The first thing you need to do is to pull out your policy" and verify the replacement cost the insurer would use, he said, warning that replacement costs and construction prices have risen sharply since many policies were written.
Hines said many Florida homeowners carry two deductibles: a small flat deductible for "all other perils" (fire, theft, vandalism) and a separate, percentage-based wind-and-hail (hurricane) deductible set by Florida insurance forms after Hurricane Andrew. He illustrated the effect: a 5% wind deductible on a $400,000 insured value is $20,000, which can exceed the cost to replace a roof. "So guess what? You're not gonna get one single solitary dime" if the deductible exceeds the repair cost, he said.
He advised policyholders to confirm that their dwelling limits reflect current replacement costs, to verify their wind-and-hail deductible percentage, and to
