Since Hurricanes Helen and Milton devastated Florida, more than 49,000 insurance claims have been denied, leaving thousands of residents in financial limbo as they try to rebuild.
Data from the Florida Department of Insurance Regulation shows many companies are denying claims related to flood damage, a risk not typically covered by standard homeowners insurance policies.
Mark Friedlander, director of corporate communications for the Insurance Information Institute, explained that many of the denied claims are related to Florida’s separate flood insurance policy requirements.
“Standard home, condo, and renters insurance policies do not include flood damage,” Friedlander noted. “If you’re filing a claim with your insurance company for a flood loss, it’s going to be denied. Another issue is not meeting your deductible, which is another big category of denial.”
For example, if your deductible for a storm is $10,000 and your damage is $8,000, your insurance won’t pay, he pointed out. He added that this standard leaves many homeowners unable to receive compensation for damages just below the deductible. He emphasized that property owners should consider purchasing separate flood insurance to be fully financially protected.
Friedlander advised residents whose claims have been denied to consider assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency as a partial alternative. He revealed that some homeowners intentionally apply to meet FEMA requirements knowing they will be denied.
“To qualify for FEMA emergency grants, you must prove to FEMA that you are not insured for the loss,” Friedlander emphasized. “The only way to do that is to have your claim denied. As part of the grant application process, you must present a letter from your insurance company to FEMA.”
The high cost of property insurance in Florida added another layer of difficulty, as the average annual premium for a home worth $300,000 is $5,527. Insurance premiums are more than double the national average, placing a financial burden on many people. Friedlander reassured residents that despite the recent hurricanes, Florida’s insurance market remains resilient thanks to recent legislative changes.
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Critics of the recent court case, which they say allows companies to escape responsibility, point to a bill in Congress that could solve the problem. Large companies often encourage arbitration when legal disputes arise, such as the case of a New Jersey couple who were injured when their Uber driver ran a red light. The couple sued Uber, but were denied after their daughter reviewed the company’s terms of service, which stipulates that riders resolve disputes through arbitration rather than in court.
Oregon Consumer Attorney General Jagjit Nagra said such agreements can often appear to be in bad faith.
“These mandatory provisions, buried in the fine print, are meant to avoid accountability, funneling disputes into the private system and often favoring corporations over individuals rather than being fought in court. ‘Law,”’ Nagra added.
A similar lawsuit was recently filed in a wrongful death lawsuit against Disney, and the Oregon Supreme Court ruled in favor of an employer that requires arbitration to resolve employment-related disputes in a 2022 case. Companies with arbitration clauses say the process is faster and less expensive than going to court. But Nagra said the U.S. Senate’s Forced Arbitration Abuse Repeal Act (FAIR Act) would take that process off the table. The bill is sponsored by Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley.
Nagra added that the FAIR Act applies to a variety of cases, including employment, consumer, antitrust, and civil rights disputes. He said there will be more transparency in court proceedings, which is good for the people.
“Say there’s an unsafe product or fraudulent activity, and now people can hold these companies and other bad actors accountable in a public process,” he said.
Nagra pointed out that the arbitration process has different rules than courts regarding evidence, and additional evidence based on irrelevant evidence or hearsay may be admissible in arbitration.
“Things that would be abhorrent in a courtroom can happen there because trials are private proceedings, and judges are paid privately by arbitration companies. “There is,” he continued.
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Several groups in Connecticut are partnering to help people claim coronavirus relief money.
The “Get Your Refund” campaign aims to enhance the tax benefits available to more than 45,000 households across the state in 2021. According to Internal Revenue Service data, there was $120 million in unclaimed federal income tax credits in 2019.
Juan Berrios, executive director of the tax assistance nonprofit Simplify CT, said there are several main reasons people can’t collect their owed money.
“I think it’s really a matter of the level of information and misinformation that was out there during that period,” Berrios said. “If you recall, our government moved so quickly that the first stimulus bill was passed and people actually started receiving checks within a few weeks after that.”
Some people can receive up to $6,700 in the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit alone, which is available to anyone with income of $64,000 or less in 2021. The expanded child tax credit is available to any family with children with a valid Social Security number. The last day to claim or apply for these missed 2021 credits is April 15, 2025.
Feedback on the campaign has been positive, with many families claiming and appreciating the benefit. Berrios noted that some people may be wary of claiming a refund because it typically applies to people who haven’t filed their taxes, but collecting the refund won’t affect their benefits. he added.
“Tax filing does not affect the benefits provided by the government,” Berrios stressed. “The Child Tax Credit, Earned Income Tax Credit, and third stimulus payment are not counted as income. They do not affect other benefits that individuals and families receive. Also note that: It is very important that immigrants can also file taxes. ”
Berrios added that given the chaotic situation in the world in 2021 due to the pandemic, local tax offices may not be open or filings may have been done virtually. She said some people may be afraid to file because they owe money to the IRS or fear being fined for not filing, but if a refund is due. admitted that no penalty will be imposed.
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An analysis of court documents by Kentucky Public Radio reveals that social media company TikTok knew users could become addicted to the platform within 35 minutes.
Kentucky is one of more than a dozen states suing TikTok, accusing it of intentionally harming children and violating consumer protection laws.
According to a 2022 Pew study, kids spend an average of more than 91 minutes a day on TikTok.
Chrystia Spears Brown, a professor of developmental psychology at the University of Kentucky, said the incidence of depression among teenagers is skyrocketing.
“We see it in wealthy kids, we see it in low-income kids, we see it in rural communities, we see it in urban communities,” Spears-Brown outlined. “We think of this as a ubiquitous and universal kind of space.”
The lawsuit seeks an injunction against TikTok’s actions and monetary damages to the state. According to the latest data from the CDC, 40% of young people in the country report feeling persistent sadness and hopelessness, and that number rises to 53% for girls. The country’s youth suicide rate soared by 62% between 2007 and 2021. TikTok maintains that it has policies in place to protect children and said the lawsuit is misleading.
The American Psychological Association maintains that social media use is “neither inherently beneficial nor harmful to young people.” However, Spears-Brown advised parents to actively monitor and manage their children’s social media use.
“One of the biggest pieces of advice for parents is to really limit the amount of time their kids spend on social media,” Spears-Brown emphasized.
TikTok has also come under intense scrutiny for allowing livestreaming features that facilitate child sexual abuse and exploitation. Thousands of minors livestream their videos, and users can send money to livestreamers in the form of digital currency, which TikTok calls “gifts,” according to court documents.
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