Southern Ontario’s windstorms in early March wreaked $100 million in insured damage, closing the Burlington Skyway and killing a 23-year-old man.
Among the insurance responders was DSB Claims Solutions, with its president and chief adjusting officer Dara Banga speaking to
Insurance Business about the need for brokers to be well-prepared for these extreme circumstances. For DSB Claims Solutions, its response is sometimes led by prioritization.
Learn more about extreme weather insurance here.
“Our typical response time is one-two hours and we’re on site. That is for any and all claims including for this windstorm,” Banga said.
“Obviously it would be more of a priority if there has been water that has come in… if there’s water coming in as a result of rain coming through the roof, we act on that more immediately.”
Banga advised brokers to stay abreast of their carrier’s catastrophe readiness procedures and know who to call when storms touch down.
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“Insurance companies they (brokers) work with have catastrophe plans in place and they should have appropriate vendors that can respond as quickly, including independent adjustors and restoration contractors,” Banga said.
In addition, it’s important to think about the area where the storm is taking place. Storms in cities take on a different risk factor, Banga said, because the buildings and landscape have unique attributes.
“If we’re talking city of Toronto, you have older trees, older properties, older homes, which sometimes can sustain a bit more damage because trees may fall on to the home or you have an older roofing system or older building materials which may come apart,” he explained.
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