Friday, November 2, 2012

"Christie Bars Insurance Companies From Charging “Hurricane Deductibles”

I'm not exactly clear on how an executive order affects contracts.
(other than Roosevelt's gold confiscation, that I get)
From NJToday:
TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie signed an executive order that prohibits insurance companies from imposing hurricane deductibles on New Jersey homeowners.

“We need to ensure that homeowners are not forced to pay higher out of pocket costs than required as they begin the rebuilding and repair process,” said Christie. “While Hurricane Sandy was a devastating storm, it did not meet the regulatory threshold to trigger the application of hurricane deductibles by insurance companies in New Jersey. This executive order makes it clear that consumers do not have to pay these unusually large and often unexpected amounts.”

A hurricane deductible typically can be in the amount of two to five percent of a property’s insured value. Thus a $500,000 house with a four percent hurricane deductible would result in a homeowner being responsible for a $20,000 deductible, rather than a more standard deductible in the $500-2,000 range....MORE