NORTH PORT, Fla. (WFLA) — It’s been more than 500 days since Hurricane Ian hit North Port, and for some, the fight to rebuild continues.
“It’s really stressful,” Gregg Smith said. “When you’re reaching the $120,000 to $150,000 mark out of your savings with no hope yet.”
The water damage and cracks that line the inside of Smith’s home are a daily reminder of the devastation he endured.
Hurricane Ian was one of the most powerful storms to make landfall in the state. It is also considered one of the costliest hurricanes in Florida’s history, with damage totaling more than $112 billion.
“The house moved during the event, and this is a result,” Smith said. “Something hit this column and cracked it. This whole thing has to be replaced. It’s a $10,000 claim to put the new column in.”
Smith filed a claim with his insurer, United Property & Casualty.
“They gave us $14,000 for $200,000 worth of damage,” Smith said. “We got a public adjuster, and it went south from there.”
UPC went insolvent last February.
The claim is now being handled by the state, through the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association, or FIGA.
However, Smith said he didn’t receive any additional payments in 2023.
He believes the amount that FIGA is offering to settle the claim won’t be enough to cover the cost of repairs needed to fix the damage to his home.
“Give a good quality settlement to us,” Smith said. “It’s as basic as that. It’s too far apart. $25,000 to $200,000? That’s a chasm.”
In the meantime, FIGA is working with Smith to re-evaluate his home and attempt to resolve the differences.
8 On Your Side reached out to FIGA to learn more about this claim, and thousands of others.
The Executive Director of FIGA told 8 On Your Side that FIGA received more than 20,000 claims from UPC when the company went insolvent last year.
As of this week, about 88% have been “successfully resolved.”
FIGA is investigating the rest and actively trying to negotiate settlements.
However, if the dispute over covered damages persists, the remaining cases will likely go to mediation.
