Creative Contractors, Inc.

How We Got Screwed by the Weathermen

It is often said that there are two occupations where you can consistently be wrong, and still keep your job—economists and weathermen. Reasonably benign professions, right? Well guess what! The heretofore trustworthy harmless weatherman has cost all of us in Florida a ton of money. How can that be? Well, let me tell you my theory.

This year, the weather experts (and there were many) predicted 18-20 named storms, with as many as 10 hitting the U.S. shores; read: Florida will have 4-8 hurricanes. OK, so they couldn’t have been more wrong. And we are certainly grateful that was the case. And so, you ask, how has this cost me money? Answer: Insurance actuaries.

When the insurance company actuaries assess the risk of hurricanes for property insurance rates, where do they look for input? Well, other than historical patterns, they look to the weather forecasters for prognostications. So, the insurance companies essentially “budgeted” for a bunch of claims. And this year in Florida, we experienced the largest property insurance increases ever. Many people faced 100% premium increases--some had 200% or more! My homeowner’s insurance premium went up 400% in 5 years.

The insurance companies raked it in this year. With the assistance of the meteorologists, they have been able to achieve profits beyond their wildest expectations. At our expense. And so while pundits all over are blaming the Legislature, the Governor, and the Taliban, I put the blame squarely on the WEATHERMEN!