Six weeks after Hurricane Irma ripped through Florida, claims for damage have now topped $5 billion. As of the latest update from the state Office of Insurance Regulation more than 23,160 property owners in Southwest Florida have filed claims for insured losses from Irma.
That is 700 claims that have been filed just since last week from Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Total losses have now climbed to $5.31 billion, up by $740,000 from the previous week.
Those claims do not include flood damage. Data analyzer CoreLogic has said flood losses in Florida and elsewhere could hit $38 billion, and up to 80 percent of the damaged homes might not have flood coverage.
The combined destruction of property from Irma and Hurricane Harvey, which struck Texas in late August, could range from $150 billion to $200 billion.