SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — A Seminole County man whose home is flooded like so many following Hurricane Ian has learned that having flood insurance is actually hurting his family in the short term.
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Don Fox’s home is right off the shores of Lake Jesup in Oviedo near the 417, and he’s unable to get housing assistance from FEMA.
Insurance adjusters can’t make it to his house that is surrounded by water. FEMA officials said they can’t help him with emergency housing until an adjuster can look at his damage.
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Fox estimates about 9 inches of water are in his home.
Chris Cury with the Florida Association of Public Insurance Adjusters said, typically, insurance companies have 90 days from the time of claim to come up with an estimate or some kind of coverage decision.
“Nobody has the resources to deal with the volume of issues that we’re seeing in (Florida) now,” Cury said.
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Fox is now trying to figure out where he’ll live. If he didn’t have flood insurance, he said he would have already been eligible for housing assistance.
“It could be a while, and so I’m not eligible for FEMA assistance until they get in there, which doesn’t make sense to me,” Fox said.
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