The Big D is well-known for its cowboy culture and scrumptious Tex-Mex cuisine. But, when it comes to insurance, what types of claims do the more than 1 million people living in Dallas file for?
Insurance claims provide financial coverage or protection when unexpected things happen, including accidents and natural disasters. In other words, claims provide compensation for a loss that is covered by the insurance policy.
There are different kinds of insurance claims. These include health insurance claims, life insurance claims, auto or car insurance claims, travel insurance claims and rental insurance claims, as well as business claims in Dallas. You can also avail of general, first party and third-party insurance claims in Dallas.
However, homeowners and natural disaster insurance claims are the most common in this part of the country. In particular, here are the most common types of claims that happen in Dallas, Texas.
Hail Damage
Hail is a big problem in all of Texas, but especially in Dallas. According to a report by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), Texas leads the top five states for hail loss claims, followed by Colorado, Nebraska, Minnesota and Illinois. In addition, Dallas also leads in the top five cities for hail loss claims, followed by Omaha in Nebraska, Denver and Colorado Springs in Colorado and McKinney in Texas. The report analyzed more than 2 million ISO ClaimSearch® claims data for a 3-year period from January 1, 2017 until December 31, 2019.
This isn’t surprising especially as North Texas counties have the highest risk for hail events in the state. The region, in general, experiences nine hail storms resulting in $340 million losses annually, reports The Dallas Morning News. Dallas once again leads the counties, with more than $102 million in expected losses yearly.
The forecasted costs are predicted to mainly come in the form of building damage. The National Risk Index corroborates these reports by placing Dallas, along with Denton and Tarrant counties, in the top 3 in terms of expected annual damage for building value caused by hail in the country.
Damages from Winds, Tornadoes and Hurricanes
Aside from hail, other natural disasters that pose a significant risk of damage to Dallas are hurricanes, tornadoes and their accompanying winds. The state is a hotbed for natural disasters.
“Texas ranks top five in almost every peril that you think of — whether it’s hurricanes, hail, wind, flooding, lightning strikes, tornadoes, all of those things,” Rich Johnson, communications director at the Insurance Council of Texas, told The Dallas Morning News.
A recent example is in 2019, when the National Weather Service recorded nine tornadoes which touched down in and around Dallas County in late October.
“Given the scope of damage across several states – with particular emphasis on the scale of tornado damage in a densely populated part of the Dallas, Texas metro region – it is anticipated that economic and insured losses will individually reach well into the hundreds of millions (USD); if not higher,” insurance and reinsurance broker Aon’s Impact Forecasting unit explained to Artemis.
For the Insurance Council of Texas (ICT), the cost projections are higher. The ICT estimated the cost of damages to be around $2 billion, a prediction that was based on more than 30,000 auto and home claims.
Water Damage and Freezing
Hail isn’t the only natural hazard that comes when the Texan temperatures start to dip. Home owners face the risk of frozen and busted water pipes when winter months come around, thanks to hail, winter storms, cold waves and ice storms. There’s also the risk of accidents brought about by icy road conditions.
Losses reach at least $754 million for the state, while it’s $106.4 million in Dallas each year for all these weather events combined, based on data from the National Risk Index (NRI). Annual cold waves usually come in trios in North Texas, which cost $7 million in losses per year based on NRI estimates. Meanwhile, it’s $874,000 annual losses for Dallas when it comes to ice storms (or freezing rain), and more than $33.4 million statewide, with $21.6 million attributed to building and property value damage.
“Any time of winter precipitation, whether it is snow, sleet or freezing rain has an impact on the region, and how the event unfolds they can each have different but very notable impacts too”, Jennifer Dunn, meteorologist at the National Weather Service Fort Worth, told The Dallas Morning News.
Outside of winter, Texans have to deal with the risk of flooding, which is a major cause of home damage in the state. While certain places are tagged as high-risk areas, 20% of all floods in Texas occur outside of those locations, reports the outlet.
Fire, Lightning and Smoke
The sound of lightning can be heard from afar, but when your house gets struck by the deadly bolt, you might think there’s an explosion.
“It sounded like a bomb went off,” home owner Deneeka Hunter told The Courier of Montgomery County.
She initially thought it was a power outage because she smelled no smoke nor did the smoke detectors go off. But, the moment she picked up the phone, that’s when it hit her – literally. Lightning’s electrical surge rushed through her body.
Lightning had struck one of the trees before their roof caught a spark. A neighbor was quick to get her and her children out the door before the house was engulfed by the flames.
Thankfully, fire and lightning are covered by most insurance policies, but they are rare at just one in 325 insured homes, according to the Insurance Information Institute. However, these claims have a tendency to be expensive, averaging more than $50,000 in 2012 to 2016.
Where there’s fire, there’s smoke, and homeowners who are dealing with fire will deal with smoke damage too.
Theft and Burglary
Theft and burglary are common property crimes, and most policies offer coverage. In the country, the FBI’s latest data indicates that more than 580,000 burglaries occur every year.
In Texas, there were nearly 100,000 reported burglaries in 2021 alone, with the burglary rate at 371 per 100,000. In 2022, data analyzed by Insurify, an American insurance comparison shopping website, showed that Texas had the highest burglary rates.
Furthermore, among the top 10 most populous cities in the U.S., four Texan cities made it to the list. San Antonio, Houston, Dallas and Austin rank first to fourth, respectively. In Dallas, the burglary rate is 515 per 100,000 residents.
What types of claims happen in Dallas TX?
In conclusion, if you’re living in Dallas, Texas, brace yourself for a mixed bag of insurance claims that span from natural disasters to theft and burglary. The city’s unique climate conditions make it particularly vulnerable to hail damage, high winds from tornadoes and hurricanes, and freezing temperatures causing water damage.
Additionally, Dallas residents face risks of fire, lightning strikes, and theft, which also contribute to the landscape of insurance claims. Understanding these common claims can better prepare you for the unexpected, ensuring you have the right insurance coverage to protect your assets. Stay informed and stay protected!
