Private insurers expect to pay more than $24.3 million in claims in Mississippi as a result of Hurricane Isaac, according to Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney.
Chaney says that as of Wednesday, Mississippi's 21 largest insurers had received 9,400 claims and paid $8.6 million.
That's tiny compared Hurricane Katrina's $41 billion in insured damage nationwide. The total from Isaac is expected to reach $2 billion.
At least another 8,000 Isaac claims are expected to be filed, the Insurance Department says. The number doesn't include claims in the federal flood insurance program or crop insurance.
Of private claims, about $16 million is expected from homeowners' policies and about $3 million from automobile policies. Chaney says Mississippi Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co. and USAA report the most claims.
