Will May's Storms Raise Insurance Rates?

By Gan Matthews, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Damage estimates from May's severe storms are now expected to reach $1 billion, but what will that mean for insurance rates?

Roofers are hard at work in neighborhoods across the metro that were affected by last month's severe weather. Some homeowners are still waiting for roofers to visit them, and many are worrying their insurance rates will rise after their claims are settled.

"Well, there are always concerns when something like this happens. You know, money's got to come from somewhere. It happened here in Oklahoma and may touch everybody in the whole United States," said Tim Tegeler, a Norman homeowner.

Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland said homeowner rates will likely not rise because insurers plan for catastrophic events.

"It's kind of a normal month if you will for insurance purposes. So although rates can go up for all sorts of different reasons, they can go down for lots of different reasons. Storms are planned for," Holland said.

Which was welcome news to Tegeler.

"That makes me feel pretty comfortable. You know, I've lived here for 25 years in Oklahoma, and insurance rates really have been staying fairly steady," Tegeler said.

Tegeler said this was the first time he's been victimized by an Oklahoma storm but hopes it's the last

Commissioner Holland said Oklahoma law forbids insurance companies from dropping customers who file their first homeowner's claim. There is no such guarantee for subsequent claims, but Holland pointed out that Oklahoma has lots of insurance carriers to choose from.

Total property damage from the May 3, 1999, tornadoes was $1.4 billion.