Travelers Announces Program to Write Insurance Policies for Coastal
Fortified Homes and Provide Incentive for Fortified Homeowners
MOBILE, Ala.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
The
Travelers Institute today hosted a symposium in Mobile, Ala., part
of a series of events to address safety, community development and
financial threats posed to coastal areas. The Mitigation Strategies for
the Alabama Coastal Region Symposium brought together business,
government and community leaders for a discussion that focused on the
importance of building homes that are more resilient to natural
disasters. At the event, Travelers (NYSE: TRV)
announced a pilot program to write insurance policies for fortified
homes in Alabama that meet established standards designed to resist the
impacts of tropical storm and hurricane winds. Qualifying homes will
also be eligible for a credit on their homeowners insurance premium.
“We know homes built to meet these stringent standards are better able
to withstand severe weather, and we want to encourage and raise
awareness of these smarter building practices,” said Eric M. Nelson,
Travelers Vice President, Personal Insurance. “Building stronger homes
is a key principle of the Travelers
Coastal Wind Zone Plan, which is our proposal to improve the
availability and affordability of windstorm insurance for homeowners in
communities along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts. Travelers wants to do
its part to keep people and their homes as safe as possible.”
Nelson served on the panel for the Travelers Institute’s mitigation
discussion, and was joined by Joan Woodward, Travelers Executive Vice
President of Public Policy and head of the Travelers Institute. Woodward
emphasized Travelers’ ongoing commitment to collaborate with leading
national experts, such as the Institute for Business and Home Safety, to
research and promote the building of resilient homes in coastal
communities.
“There has been significant growth in coastal communities, with more
than 50 percent of the population in the United States living within 50
miles of a coastline, which has left U.S. coastlines vulnerable to
catastrophic events,” said Woodward. “Data proves the dramatic benefits
of mitigation strategies, which is why the Travelers Institute aims to
keep the mitigation conversation relevant in coastal communities. We’re
bringing together legislators as well as business and community leaders
to develop strategies and solutions for making communities more
resilient.”
In addition to Nelson and Woodward, the panelists at the Mobile
symposium included:
- Charles M. Angell, Acting Deputy Commissioner & Casualty Actuary,
Alabama Department of Insurance;
- Cliff Barros, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity of Baldwin
County; and
- Chad Wilson, Travelers Second Vice President, Personal Insurance.
The community symposium provided a fitting backdrop for Woodward to
present a $15,000 grant to the Habitat for Humanity of Baldwin County on
behalf of the Travelers Foundation to help fund the construction of a
Habitat for Humanity home in coastal Baldwin County that will be built
to the IBHS
Fortified for Safer Living® standards. Travelers’ support for Habitat
for Humanity reinforces the importance of reducing a home’s life cycle
cost by facilitating access to homes with lower mortgage payments,
energy costs, insurance premiums and stronger construction standards.
“Habitat for Humanity of Baldwin County takes great pride in helping
local families achieve the American dream, and we’re grateful for
companies like Travelers for helping make that dream come true,” said
Cliff Barros, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity of Baldwin
County. “What’s more, the Habitat home will be built fortified, as we
share the same message as Travelers that a fortified home is a safer
home for families and communities.”
The Travelers Institute will continue hosting symposia in states along
the Gulf and Atlantic coasts to bring stakeholders together to discuss
solutions to create more resilient communities. For more information,
visit www.travelersinstitute.com.
About the Travelers Institute
The Travelers Institute, the
public policy division of The Travelers Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRV),
engages in discussion and analysis of public policy topics of importance
to the insurance marketplace and the financial services industry. The
Travelers Institute draws upon the industry expertise of Travelers’
senior management and the technical expertise of many of Travelers’
underwriters, risk managers and other experts to provide information and
analysis to public policy makers and regulators. Travelers is a leading
provider of property casualty insurance for auto,
home
and business.
For more information, visit www.travelers.com.
Source: Travelers
Contact:
Travelers
Sheila Trauernicht, 860-277-7461
strauern@travelers.com
or
Matt
Bordonaro, 860-277-7014
mbordona@travelers.com