Isaias Claims Data: What Florida Agencies Should Do Now

Source: Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, Hurricane Isaias claims data, reported by insurers as of October 15, 2026.

What happened

Hurricane Isaias made landfall in the Florida Panhandle near Destin on October 9. By October 15, insurers had reported 46,509 claims and about $582 million in estimated insured losses to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. Residential property accounts for 40,406 of those claims. Santa Rosa and Escambia counties hold almost 8 in 10 of them; Okaloosa, Walton and Bay follow.

For context, Hurricane Sally hit nearly the same area in 2020 and produced about 72,000 claims and $577 million in losses within six weeks (Claims Journal). Karen Clark & Co. puts privately insured wind and surge losses from Isaias at about $3 billion across the Panhandle, Alabama and coastal Mississippi, excluding the NFIP. AM Best sees it as an earnings event for insurers, not a threat to their solvency (Claims Journal).

Why it matters for your agency

Most Isaias claims are still open without payment. That is normal one week in. The claims already closed show where many are heading: about 4 in 5 closed without payment. The most-cited reasons are administrative (a new OIR category that includes withdrawn or duplicate claims and policyholders the carrier could not reach), damage below the deductible, and flood damage the policy does not cover (Claims Journal).

Each of those reasons ends in a conversation with your client. Better it happens now, with you, than at renewal with a competitor. A closed claim with no check is the moment a client decides whether their agent was on their side.

Three things to do this week

1. List every client with an Isaias claim in Santa Rosa, Escambia, Okaloosa, Walton and Bay. Sort by hurricane deductible and call first the ones whose damage is likely to land below it.
2. Reconnect the clients carriers can't reach. Administrative closures include policyholders the carrier could not contact. Confirm phone and email on file, and help them get back to the adjuster before the claim closes for good.
3. Flag the flood gaps. If a client had water damage and no flood policy, explain the gap in plain language now and note it for the renewal conversation.

While you do it, log every storm call in one place: who called, what they asked, which carrier. That log becomes your renewal list and your after-action report for the next storm. [EVERGREEN LINK: After the Storm: How Florida Agencies Handle the Call Spike, add when post 1.5 publishes]

Also on the radar

• Workers' comp rates may drop in 2027. NCCI proposes an average 7.4% decrease for Florida's voluntary market, effective January 1, 2027. OIR holds a virtual hearing on October 27, and public comments are open until November 10 at 5 p.m. ET. It is not approved yet (OIR).
• Citizens' commercial clearinghouse is on hold. The platform meant to help agents move Citizens commercial policies to surplus lines carriers is due in January, but OIR says Citizens must first amend its Plan of Operation, and the board chair wants to rethink the plan (Insurance Journal).