For a long while, natural disasters were an afterthought to those who lived in New Mexico. However, over the past couple of years, natural disasters have grown into a more significant concern, changing the way people seek coverage for their property.
A couple of years ago, Hurricane Harvey ravaged Texas. Residents in New Mexico grew concerned as the storm headed their way. Residents knew that were a hurricane to hit New Mexico, they would likely be unprepared.
Were a hurricane to make its way into New Mexico, the South Valley would flood rather quickly. Additionally, if the storm were to clear the mountainous area in the north, the storm would likely stall. A storm that stalls would produce heavy rain, flooding mountain canyons in a matter of hours.
One of the other threats that continues to plague New Mexico is wildfires. New Mexico tends to be quite dry in the summer, going through drought periods. Northern New Mexico saw intense fires tear through the area in summer 2018. The wildfires threatened nearly 2,000 homes in the area. Residents were forced to evacuate their homes.
Part of the problem with mandatory evacuation was that many of those required to leave lived in remote areas. There was no easy way for them to access interstates or highways.
The fires proved quite tough to contain. The Ute Park Fire in Colfax County burned quickly, burning through tens of thousands of acres of land. Even after burning for a few days, the fire was zero percent
contained. The fire threatened the 300 structures and 1,100 people who lived in a small town known as Cimarron. Officials were also forced to close the Santa Fe National Forest as a result of the fires.
The New Mexico Property Insurance Program underwrites the New Mexico FAIR Plan. The New Mexico legislature put the FAIR Plan in place to provide essential property insurance to those who cannot find coverage in the standard market.
If you live in a high-risk area, you may feel that the FAIR Plan is the only choice you have for coverage. However, this is not the case. It could be in your best interest to look for alternatives to the New Mexico FAIR Plan that exist in the private market. Alternatives to the New Mexico FAIR Plan could not only provide you with better coverage but with more affordable rates as well.