Most insurance coverage provides little protection against power outages – but some businesses and homeowners may still be able to file claims, officials said yesterday.
“You can’t put a claim in for the meat that’s in the freezer, but if your refrigerator burns out because of a power surge when it came back on line, then you may have a claim,” said state Insurance Superintendent Gregory Serio.
Despite the number of people affected, “it is not a major insurance event,” Serio said of the blackout.
“And given the fact that . . . parts of Rockland and Westchester counties and Long Island were up before the end of the night . . . there probably won’t be a high incidence of insurance-claim activity.”
Officials said that people with possible claims should immediately look over their policies to see what is covered, then call their agents.
They can also call the Insurance Department’s disaster hot line, (800) 339-1759, where staffers are on hand to give advice throughout the weekend and next week.
But Serio warned that power failure is similar to flood damage in most homeowners policies – it’s not covered.
In the past, insurance claims tied directly to a power failure have been limited.
When 9 million people in New York were without power for 25 hours in 1977 after lightning struck upstate power lines, it led to only $2 million in direct claims, according to the Insurance Information Institute.
Looting and riots, which resulted in 3,700 arrests, caused an additional $28 million in insured losses.