Where Is the billion coming from?
The total claim in 2022 was around 952 million USD, by lightning damage alone.
The amount of claims of damage done by lightning actually increased last year, although the cost per claim actually reduced slightly.
This means that the damages are less severe, but if they were as severe as other years (or the claims were paid out higher), the number would most likely succeed 1 billion USD in a year.
Hot and moist air coming from earth results in different natural catastrophes, one of which is lightning. The warming of the earth has contributed to the storms being more severe and more often last year.
In Florida, as expected, the most claims were filed and California follows suit nicely by being second. Texas actually had the third most amount of claims in 2022.
Is lightning covered in my homeowners’ insurance?
Luckily, lightning is a very common occurrence and can be quite well overseen. The costs of damages are not very high to insurance companies, compared to fire and flood damages.
This is one of the reasons that damages caused by lightning are always covered by standard homeowners’ insurance policies. You have no need to take out an extra policy for this.
That said, this is a standard procedure and it could be that power surges or other extra events due to a lightning strike, for example, are not covered in your insurance.
It is always good to check what you are insured for and how much you are insured for.
“Lightning never strikes in the same place twice” is an odds game and it surely can happen to you at some day. Lightning does not have a geographical limit to where it can happen and so it is important to check if it would fit your policy.
What does 2023 hold in store for homeowners’ claims?
Due to the extreme weather conditions in 2023, the extreme hurricanes and wildfires, it is expected that 2023 will see an unprecedented amount of claims on homeowners’ insurances.
This is also the reason many insurance companies are pulling their policies from high-risk states such as California and Florida.
A homeowners’ insurance company can only continue existing if it is capable of actually paying out its members, through premiums that are paid.
With the rise in claims, some companies struggle to get the money flow positive to keep their business running.
Some of these cancellations and changes to the way of serving are new and unprecedented and it is a matter of time before we know what to expect.
But it is a good example of why you always should stay up to date on the latest developments and keep an eye on your own policy and its changes.