More Than 21,000 Hurricane Michael Insurance Claims Are Still Open

It’s been nine months since Hurricane Michael devastated the Florida Panhandle.

But insurance companies still have yet to pay out more than 21,000 claims, state officials say.

That’s about 15 percent of all claims from the historic Category 5 storm, Office of Insurance Regulation Commissioner David Altmaier told Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Cabinet on Thursday.

Altmaier said afterward that the figure is “discouraging.” By law, insurance companies are supposed to pay claims within 90 days of being filed, if the claims are not contested.