As I sit in my living room writing this blog, my home is being bombarded by what I consider a freakishly violent windstorm. I contemplated videotaping the windstorm but as the night wears on, I find the howling winds and bent trees to be too disturbing to watch. It’s not very often that Southern California has winds of these magnitude. The weather report indicates sustained winds of 25-40 mph with gusts of 60 to 70 mph.
These winds remind me of the winter windstorms of 2011. The 2011 windstorms that ravaged neighborhoods of Pasadena and the Valleys caused down power lines and trees leading to blackouts and roofing damage. Back in 2011, the California Insurance Commissioner’s office issued press releases to the public to remind them of how windstorms may affect insurance claims. In 2011, the Commissioner urged consumers to check their inventory to make sure they were properly insured. A copy of the press release can be accessed here:
http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2011/release158-11.cfm
As for these storms, California consumers should be warned that such high wind gusts may affect roofs across the Southland, contributing to roof fails with the upcoming anticipated Super El Nino rains. Often, HO3 Insurance policies do not cover wear and tear and failed roofs not properly maintained. However, high winds can bring up shingles and other parts of roofing, and without proper inspection can go unnoticed until rain seeps through the windblown openings into the home to damage both real and personal property.
After significant wind events such as that experienced today in Southern California, it’s wise for consumers to have their homes and roofing examined for damage and to take a good inventory of their possessions to make sure they have enough insurance and to make sure that the damage is properly remediated to avoid bigger losses from incoming rain from El Nino this winter season.
