In many parts of Texas, the weather varies most of the year between darn hot and dang hot, so winter is often a welcome respite from sweltering temperatures.
There can be, however, a dark side to winter, as many Texans found out during the deep freeze in February 2021, and that is the damage that freezing weather can cause to homes and autos.
“The extreme weather that caused days of blackouts in the Lone Star State has triggered one of the costliest and most unusual insurance events in Texas history when indoor plumbing froze and exploded in homes bereft of heat,” reported The Wall Street Journal.
Unfortunately, many Texas homeowners were unprepared for the deep freeze, and many suffered damages, some of which were not covered by their insurance policies.
“Some homeowners have been left to deal with losses that their insurance doesn’t cover,” reported The Wall Street Journal. “Many have discovered that their policies limited payouts on plumbing-related water damage, often at $5,000 to $10,000 – well below what they need.”
Karen Clark & Co., which runs catastrophe-modeling software widely used in the U.S. insurance industry, estimated that property insurers faced an estimated $18 billion in damage to homes and businesses from that deep freeze in Texas and 19 other states.
KXAN Austin reported that the Texas Department of Insurance had cataloged 500,196 insurance claims by insurers from the storm with more than 85 percent of these claims from residential property owners and homeowners. Commercial properties made up just under 10 percent of those claims.
“This report estimated insurers were expected to ultimately pay about $10.3 billion in losses from this event,” reported KXAN.
The average incurred loss for residential property, according to the Claims Journal was about $15,800, and for commercial property policies about $126,900.
For those that didn’t live through that monumental 2021 storm, here is what the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas says happened:
“While industry sources report gas production difficulties occurred because of wells and other such installations freezing, the bigger disruption began when power was cut to the wells, processing plants and compressor stations that move the gas into and along major pipelines serving power plants,” says the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
During the storm, 38 of Texas’ 176 gas processing plants shut down due to weather conditions and electricity service disruption. Texas natural gas production dropped 45 percent Feb 13–17.
“This created a death spiral for electricity generation,” said the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas says that for power companies the moral to the story is that the cost of the 2021 deep freeze justifies weatherization.
The same goes for homeowners, who may still be wearing shorts at Thanksgiving, but come February the weather may freeze and they should know what tips to take to protect their homes and autos.
The Austin American-Statesman says that before you think about your home or car, think about you and your family, and stock up on the essentials before extreme weather hits your Texas neighborhood:
What about your home? Here are some tips to get it ready for another deep freeze:
In the event of freezing weather, you can open cabinets beneath kitchen and bathroom sinks to allow warmer air to reach your pipes.
Some people like to drip one cold water faucet in the home during a freeze to allow water to run through the pipes and help prevent freezing. If you do this, use a faucet that is the greatest distance from your main shutoff valve.
Much like the advice for your home appliances such as your furnace and water heater, the best tip for freezing weather is to have your vehicle properly serviced and running in peak condition before cold temperatures hit.
Ideally, your vehicle will sit idle during any storms but there are times when people must drive in freezing temperatures. Here are some tips:
Bridgestone Tire says that if you get stuck in freezing weather conditions while driving, do not run your car for long periods of time, but turn it on long enough to stay warm, and then turn it off again to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.
Ultimately the best freezing weather advice for Texas drivers is to stay clear of the roads until the driving conditions improve.
The recommendation(s), advice and contents of this material are provided for informational purposes only and do not purport to address every possible legal obligation, hazard, code violation, loss potential or exception to good practice. Dean & Draper Insurance Agency specifically disclaims any warranty or representation that acceptance of any recommendations or advice contained herein will make any premises, property or operation safe or in compliance with any law or regulation. Under no circumstances should this material or your acceptance of any recommendations or advice contained herein be construed as establishing the existence or availability of any insurance coverage with Dean & Draper Insurance Agency. By providing this information to you, Dean & Draper Insurance Agency does not assume (and specifically disclaims) any duty, undertaking or responsibility to you. The decision to accept or implement any recommendation(s) or advice contained in this material must be made by you.