Insurance Industry Suggests Five Steps to Make Your Home More Hurricane Resistant

Experts Predict 2007 Will Be a Severe Hurricane Season

INSURANCE INFORMATION INSTITUTE
Contact: Press Offices
New York: 212-346-5500; media@iii.org
Washington, D.C.: 202-833-1580

NEW YORK, May 17, 2007 - Hurricanes can cause extensive damage to homes and property. With experts predicting an active hurricane season this year, it is more important than ever for homeowners to take the proper precautions to reduce that damage, according to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) and the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).

"The most important precaution you can take to reduce damage to your home and property is to protect the areas where wind and water can enter," said Dr. Tim Reinhold, director of Engineering and vice president, IBHS. "Our damage investigations in past hurricane seasons have taught us a lot about how to protect homes better."

Dr. Reinhold has identified five steps homeowners or their contractors can take to make homes more hurricane-resistant:

1. Shutter all openings: Windows and doors are key entry points for wind and water, so shutters are critical. Shutters should have the proper ratings for impact resistance (including wind pressure and large missile impact), such as the Miami-Dade Protocols.
    
2. Protect gable end vents. These can also be an entry point for wind and water. Louvers that cover them are not designed to keep out rain driven by hurricane-force winds. Keep your attic, and insulation, dry by shuttering it as if it were a window. And if you pre-drill and permanently install all shutter hardware, you will save time when a storm hits.
    
3. Secure loose roof shingles: Keeping shingles attached is critical to protecting your house. Loose or ragged shingles should be replaced or secured with roofing cement, which is available at most hardware stores.
    
4. Seal openings, cracks and holes: Water can invade homes in a number of ways, especially when it is being blown horizontally. Use caulk to seal cracks and holes where phone and cable lines enter your home.
    
5. Strengthen doors: Any area that allows access to the house can be a potential trouble spot. Install impact resistant garage doors, which are made with twice as many steel struts and stronger tracks. Double doors, also known as French doors should have heavy duty barrel bolt anchors at the top and bottom and a dead bolt at least one-inch long. Doors that open outwards instead of inwards are even better.

"If you do everything on this list, it could cost $4,000 or more but your home will be much stronger and safer," said Jeanne Salvatore, senior vice president and consumer spokesperson at the I.I.I. "On the other hand, if you don't make these improvements and you're hit with major damage, you could end up paying a sizable hurricane deductible before the insurance payment kicks in. In comparison, the $4,000 will seem like a bargain."

If you are remodeling or re-roofing your house, you can increase its defenses even further by making sure the roof is well-fastened to the rafters and by choosing materials that are rated and installed for high winds.

For more information on fortifying your home, go to the IBHS Web site at www.disastersafety.org .

For more information on insurance, go to the I.I.I.'s Web site at www.iii.org .

You can view a video about fortifying your home at /static/video/mediaplayer/5ThingsYouCanDo.wmv .

You can download the associated I.I.I. audio file at /media/radio/prhurricaneresistance/ .

The I.I.I. is a nonprofit, communications organization supported by the insurance industry.