Today’s the deadline to request a Sandy flood insurance claim review
A home rests next to a pier in Barnegat Bay, Thursday, April 25, 2013, near the Mantoloking Bridge in Mantoloking, N.J., after it was swept away last October by Superstorm Sandy. Six months after Sandy devastated the Jersey shore and New York City and pounded coastal areas of New England, the region is dealing with a slow and frustrating, yet often hopeful, recovery. (Mel Evans/AP Photo)
Today’s your last chance to request a review of your Hurricane Sandy flood insurance claim.
“If you feel your Sandy claim was underpaid, I encourage you to call us so we can take another look and we stand ready to take your calls,” said Roy Wright, Deputy Associate Administrator for Insurance and Mitigation for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
More than 12,500 policyholders have entered the review process so far, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“FEMA has begun providing funds to policyholders who completed the review and were due additional payments on their claim,” Wright said.
According to FEMA, here’s who’s eligible and how to request a review:
To be eligible for the review, policyholders must have experienced flood damage between Oct. 27, 2012 and Nov. 6, 2012 as a result of Hurricane Sandy and must have had an active NFIP flood policy at the time of the loss.
Policyholders can call the NFIP’s Hurricane Sandy claims center at 866-337-4262 to request a review. It is important to have your policy number and insurance company name when you call.
The call center operates weekdays from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. EDT to 6 p.m. EDT.
Policyholders can go online to www.fema.gov/hurricane-sandy-nfip-claims to download a form requesting a review. The downloaded form can be filled out and emailed to FEMA-sandyclaimsreview@fema.dhs.gov or faxed to 202-646-7970 to begin the review process. For individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and use 711 or VRS, please call 866-337-4262. For individuals using a TTY, please call 800-462-7585 to begin the review process.
When policyholders call, it is helpful if they have available as much information as possible, including the name(s) on the policy, the address of the damaged property and the ten-digit NFIP policy number that was in effect at the time of the loss. Policyholders will be asked a series of questions to determine whether they qualify for the review. If qualified, they will be called by an adjuster to begin the review. The timing of this call may be affected by the volume of requests. Most reviews can be concluded within 90 days.
Policyholders who have already requested a review of their claim do not have to call again, as they are system and an adjuster will continue to work with them after the Sept. 15 deadline, according to FEMA.
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