FLORIDA – Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier warned people not to exploit evacuations and power outages from Hurricane Isaias to break into homes, while Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia urged residents to document their property and important papers before the storm.
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“Do not do it. Don’t even try it during times like this,” Uthmeier said, warning that looting during an emergency can be charged as a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison.
Uthmeier said his office would work with law enforcement and asked residents to report suspicious activity, including someone entering a neighbor’s home. He also urged people to report price gouging on fuel, groceries and other storm supplies to the attorney general’s office.
Ingoglia advised residents in the storm’s path to take photos and videos of the inside and outside of their homes, creating a record that could help if they later dispute an insurance claim.
He also recommended photographing important documents, including insurance declarations pages and vehicle titles, then uploading the files to the cloud so they can be retrieved later.
The state has contacted the leaders of 60 insurance companies and expects them to help residents with claims when it is safe to do so, Ingoglia said. Floridians with insurance questions can call 877-MY-FL-CFO for assistance.
Both officials warned residents to watch for scammers and fraudsters after the storm. Ingoglia said people should be cautious if someone comes to their door without identifying themselves and, if safe, photograph the person and their vehicle to help authorities identify them.
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