Changed Your Mind About Staying In Your Storm Damaged Home? Tell FEMA Now

TRENTON, N.J. – Nearly six weeks after Hurricane Sandy ravaged New Jersey, survivors have a chance to reconsider a decision they made in the immediate aftermath of the disaster.

Thousands of New Jersey survivors answered “will not relocate” when FEMA housing inspectors asked what they planned to do while repairs are being made on their homes or apartments. That response made them ineligible for FEMA temporary housing assistance.

Some who would like FEMA help today may find the window still open.

Here’s what to do:

  • If it has been less than 30 days since you received a FEMA determination letter, call 800-621-3362 and tell FEMA that your housing situation has changed and that you’d like temporary housing assistance.
  • However, if it has been more than 30 days since you received a FEMA determination letter, you will need to reply in a letter to FEMA stating that you want to change your earlier response, explain how your circumstances have changed and that you’d like FEMA temporary housing assistance.

Survivors can follow up on previous applications online at DisasterAssistance.gov, or by web-enabled mobile device at m.FEMA.gov. By phone or 711/VRS, call 800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 800-462-7585. Help is also available at FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers, which can be found at  www.fema.gov/DRCloc.                                                      

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Follow FEMA online at www.fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema.  Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate’s activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema. 

The social media links provided are for reference only. FEMA does not endorse any non-government websites, companies or applications.

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Changed Your Mind About Staying In Your Storm Damaged Home? Tell FEMA Now

Register For Federal Disaster Assistance Even If You Have Insurance

ATLANTA—Hurricane Isaac survivors in Mississippi who had property losses in Hancock, Harrison, Jackson or Pearl River counties should register for federal disaster assistance even if  they have insurance.

Insured survivors should register as soon as they can with the Federal Emergency Management Agency for several reasons.

Federal disaster assistance may be provided prior to a delayed insurance settlement and assist an eligible survivor during their recovery. However, federal assistance must be repaid once an insurance settlement is received.         

An insurance settlement may be insufficient to cover all eligible damages or losses. Federal disaster assistance may fill in eligible gaps a survivor’s insurance doesn’t cover.

Survivors who have flood insurance on their property should be aware that it covers the following:

  • The structure and its foundation
  • Electrical and plumbing
  • Central air conditioning equipment, furnaces and water heaters,
  • Refrigerators, cooking stoves and built-in appliances such as dishwashers
  • Permanently installed carpeting over unfinished flooring
  • Permanently installed paneling, wallboard, bookcases and cabinets
  • Window blinds
  • Detached garages
  • Debris removal
  • Some personal items, such as clothing, furniture, window units, microwave ovens and dishwashers, washers and dryers and food freezers

Federal disaster assistance may include temporary housing assistance if a residence is uninhabitable and its coverage does not include additional living expenses.

Assistance for insured survivors may come in the form of grants or low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Survivors can register by going to www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362). They also can apply through their smartphones or tablets by going to m.fema.gov. 

Disaster applicants who use TTY should call 800-462-7585. Those who use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS) should call 800-621-3362.

FEMA’s mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Disaster recovery assistance is available without regard to race, color, religion, nationality, sex, age, disability, English proficiency or economic status. If you or someone you know has been discriminated against, call FEMA toll-free at 800-621-FEMA (3362). For TTY call 800-462-7585.

FEMA’s temporary housing assistance and grants for public transportation expenses, medical and dental expenses, and funeral and burial expenses do not require individuals to apply for an SBA loan. However, applicants who receive SBA loan applications must submit them to SBA loan officers to be eligible for assistance that covers personal property, vehicle repair or replacement, and moving and storage expenses.

 

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Register For Federal Disaster Assistance Even If You Have Insurance