SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

Yes, it’s last minute, but we’re passing it along anyway…

State Assembly Insurance Committee Chair Kevin A. Cahill will be holding a roundtable today at 2:00 p.m. at the Shorefront YM-YWHA of Brighton – Manhattan Beach (3300 Coney Island Avenue) to discuss the claims settlement practices of insurers related to Superstorm Sandy. He will be joined by Assemblymembers Steven Cymbrowitz, Helene Weinstein and Alec Brook-Krasny.

Cahill has been making the rounds to Sandy-afflicted areas to discuss the topic, and it may result in proposed legislative changes in the case of future disasters.

“The damage caused by Sandy left hundreds of thousands of homes and commercial properties without power and caused an extraordinary amount of property damage,” said Cahill. “This roundtable will help us determine if insurance companies adequately responded to claims from families and businesses that rely on their insurance policies to recover from such a disaster.”

The committee will also hear testimony from representatives of the Department of Financial Services, insurance agents and brokers, consumers, adjusters and major insurance companies.

Source: Eric Houser via Flickr

Still waiting for your Superstorm Sandy insurance check? It might be at the bank. Apparently, major banks have about $41 million worth of Sandy insurance money, but aren’t releasing any of it until they are sure that the money will be spent on repairs, according to a report in the New York Daily News.

The bank taking the most time in issuing insurance money is Selene Finance of Texas. They haven’t issued 71 percent of their Sandy insurance checks. Other offending banks making the list are Capital One, Nationstar, Astoria Federal and Select Portfolio.

Homeowners looking for an ally in this fight to against the delinquent banks have a big one in Governor Andrew Cuomo.

“Some banks have continued to lag especially far behind the rest, and it’s well past time for them to pick up the pace,” Governor Cuomo said, according to the Daily News.

The biggest banks (Citi, Chase, Bank of America) have done a decent job of paying out the much needed insurance money, paying out 89 percent of what is owed.

Here is a list of the 10 slowest banks and how much money they are still holding back.

1. Selene Finance, $1.87 million (71%)

2. Select Portfolio, $4.86 million (56%)

3. Astoria Federal, $3.67 million (48%)

4. Capital One, $3.7 million (45%)

5. Nationstar Mortgage, $6 million (44%)

6. Flagstar, $2.9 million (42%)

7. Specialized Loan, $1.37 million (41%)

8. OneWest Bank, $14.3 million (39%)

9. Sun Trust Mortgage, $712,884 (39%)

10. Mid-Island Mortgage, $1.25 million (38%)

Do you use any of these banks and are still waiting for your insurance check to be approved ? Let us know about it.

Photo by Erica Sherman

State Senator Marty Golden has scheduled two visits of the New York State Department of Financial Services’ Insurance Response Unit to aid victims in his district who were affected by Superstorm Sandy.

• Today, March 18 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., the NYS Department of Financial Services Mobile Command Center will be in Sheepshead Bay, on the corner of Sheepshead Bay Road and Emmons Avenue.
• Tomorrow, March 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., the Mobile Command Center will be outside the Gerritsen Beach Public Library, 2808 Gerritsen Avenue.

Staff will be available to assist homeowners and business owners with the following:

• City, state and federal relief programs and how to get help
• Questions about the insurance claims process in New York
• Seeking resolution on your claims with your insurer or bank
• Filing an official complaint against an insurer or bank

Anyone who can’t visit the Mobile Command Center in person can file complaints through the New York State Disaster Relief website, www.nyinsure.ny.gov or by calling the Disaster Relief Hotline, (800) 339-1759, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 pm.

Helene Weinstein

Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein put forward a bill that would protect people from unfair insurance practices administered during a time when the governor has declared a disaster emergency, according to a report by Insurance Journal.

The language of the bill (A05780) states that it “would establish a private right of action for the insured for unfair insurance settlement practices when the claim relates to loss or injury in an area where the governor has declared a disaster emergency.”

The new legislation doesn’t prevent insurance companies from denying claims. Rather, it reintroduces an element of common sense and fairness in situations where disaster victims have lost everything and are left with the maddening process of fighting insurance companies over the technicalities of what they are owed.

The “private right of action” would grant insureds the power to fight their insurance companies over blatantly unfair practices in the face of a storm’s devastation.

The extra cherry on the bill allows for people to seek punitive damages from insurance companies that screw over their customers the next time a huge disaster like Superstorm Sandy comes and wipes them out.

Source: Wikimedia Commons via Wikipedia

Congressmen Michael Grimm and Gregory Meeks were joined by colleagues Charles Rangel, Jerrold Nadler and Eliot Engle to introduce the Flood Victim Premium Relief Act 2013 (H.R. 960), a bill which aims to delay flood insurance hikes for Superstorm Sandy victims, according to a report by SI Live.

In a release issued by Congressman Grimm, the bill extends “the premium increase timeline for primary residences in areas that have been declared a federal disaster area after July 6, 2012 from 5 years to 8 years.”

Grimm expressed the importance this bill will play in helping homeowners make it through these tough times.

“If we allow flood premiums to increase on their current schedule, based on the new maps, homeowners are going to be in an impossible position of trying to both pay their mortgage as well as increased flood premiums that may rise over $10,000 in some cases. This situation will almost certainly lead to a surge in defaults and foreclosures and cost the taxpayers vast sums via the government’s exposure to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA. Allowing an extra three years to increase premiums will give both homeowners and localities time make smart, long term flood mitigation and rebuilding plans.”

The bill, a bipartisan effort, has received support from Congressman Hakeem Jeffries.

The Manhattan Beach Neighborhood Association will hold its next meeting on Monday, March 11, where they’re planning a workshop for seeking tax relief in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

The how-to workshop will be led by a former IRS agent and certified public accountant.

The meeting kicks off at 8:00 p.m. at P.S. 195, 131 Irwin Street.

File photo

Homeowners around the city received a letter from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection recently, informing them of a new insurance program covering the water and sewer lines connecting their homes to the public system. The timing of the letter – just weeks after Superstorm Sandy wreaked havoc on the area’s infrastructure – raised alarm for many, who sent Sheepshead Bites e-mails and Facebook messages wondering if this was a scam.

Well, it’s not. We spoke to Department of Environmental Protection representatives last week, and the program has been in development since long before Sandy.

“In terms of this program, while the timing is a coincidence, it does not have anything to do with Hurricane Sandy,” said Chris Gilbride, communications director for the DEP.

Keep reading to find out more about this program and what it covers.

Photo by Erica Sherman.

The New York State Department of Financial Services mobile unit is stationed in Manhattan Beach until 7:00 p.m. tonight, assisting residents and business owners with bank and insurance issues. And they’ve got company: representatives from several local banks who will hopefully help ease lending and the release of tied-up insurance funds.

Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz writes:

On Monday, March 4th, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., representatives of five of New York’s largest banks and mortgage servicers will be stationed in the Department of Financial Services’ Mobile Command Center outside P.S. 195, 131 Irwin Street (between Shore and Oriental Boulevards) offer one-on-one help to homeowners.

JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, CitiMortgage and Ocwen Loan Servicing will be on hand. Other institutions sending representatives include OneWest Bank and Assurant, which will represent dozens of smaller banks and mortgage servicers.

… As a member of the Assembly’s Committee on Insurance, I heard testimony at a hearing last week which shed light into policyholders’ experiences with insurance companies in the four months since Sandy struck. Thousands of residents and store owners are still struggling to rebuild their homes and reopen their businesses, and for many of them, difficulties with banks and insurance claims are the primary reason why this process is taking so long.

Insurers typically issue checks jointly to a homeowner and the homeowner’s mortgage bank or servicer following the settlement of a large insurance claim. That means the bank needs to endorse the check before the homeowner may access the funds. Dual endorsement is a standard requirement of mortgage notes and insurance contracts to protect the lender’s interest. Banks may also require proof that repairs have been made before endorsing checks.

Last month, the Department of Financial Services found that banks were holding more than $200 million in insurance funds from Storm Sandy victims; the Department urged the banks to use maximum discretion and effort to speed the release of funds and asked Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to announce emergency reforms to their rules to provide banks and mortgage servicers with even more discretion to release funds.

The five participating banks and servicers will be immediately releasing an estimated $70-80 million to current borrowers as a result of these rule changes.

The Department of Financial Services is also available to anyone who has questions or concerns about general insurance-related issues.

If you can’t attend, you can still get help by calling the department at (800) 339-1759. Insurance information is also available on the department’s website.

Source: NYS DFS

If you need help with an insurance issue, the New York State Department of Financial Services’ (DFS) Insurance Response Unit is coming to Sheepshead Bay.

Staff from DFS will be providing insurance assistance from its Mobile Command Center (MCC) on the corner of Sheepshead Bay Road and Emmons Avenue (in front of El Greco Diner), March 2 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

They will be helping homeowners and business owners with:

• City, state and federal relief programs and how to get help
• Questions about the insurance claims process in New York
• Seeking resolution on your claims with your insurer or bank
• Filing an official complaint against an insurer or bank.

Bring all relevant documents with you when you visit the MCC, such as correspondence with your insurer or bank.

If you can’t visit the MCC in person you can always get help with insurance issues or file complaints via the NYS Disaster Relief site www.nyinsure.ny.gov or by calling the Disaster Relief Hotline at (800) 339-1759 Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

After Superstorm Sandy hit us late last October, everyone knew that the future of maintaining a residential home close to the water was not going to be the same. One of the earliest signs of the changing reality for coastal home owners was FEMA’s designation of flood zone lines further inward. This act forces thousands of people to buy flood insurance and further compels them to elevate their homes three feet above sea level at the risk of facing staggering insurance rates.

As homeowners prepare to meet these new regulations, a bipartisan City Council effort has proposed legislation that would ensure quality control of the tricky and expensive elevation process, according to a report by NY1.

Council members Vincent Ignizio, James Oddo and Christine Quinn expressed the need for safety regulations and quality control in the house elevation process at a press conference yesterday. Ignizio and Oddo went on a fact-finding mission to New Orleans to meet with Louisiana officials on the best way to craft legislation that would protect homeowners and ensure safety when it comes to home elevation construction:

The councilmen took a picture of a house in Louisiana that was placed on tall stilts but did not have a staircase.

“Make sure you have a process in place and you have licensed people doing it. Because what you had in New Orleans was you had people come from all over the country,” Ignizio said. “It was your classic story of, ‘Hey this guy said he would raise your house for $50,000? I’ll do it for 20 grand, just give me the 20 grand, I’ll take care of it.’ And they would do a terrible job.”

Council member and mayoral hopeful Christine Quinn, also stressed the importance of getting home elevation well regulated and supervised before a slew of work gets underway.

“We want to make sure that the elevation work is done safely and appropriately. Elevating a home is simply not lifting a house and putting it on stilts. It’s a complex process and proper measures have to be taken before and during the work to make sure it’s done in the safest way possible.”

As we previously reported, expenses will be high for homeowners looking to meet the new regulations.

According to the New York Times, a $250,000 home with a ground floor four feet below sea level, will have to pay a hefty $9,500 a year in flood insurance. By comparison, a home hoisted three feet above the flood line will only have to pay $427 a year.