What happens if a coastal Georgia business cannot get private wind coverage?

All FAQs

Quick answer: The Georgia Underwriting Association (GUA) is the state's residual property market for wind and hard-to-place coastal risk under O.C.G.A. Title 33, Chapter 33. Georgia does not run a dedicated wind pool; GUA is the market of last resort. It writes the property risk private carriers decline, but flood and storm surge still need a separate flood policy. Available through Olive Cover.

When a coastal Georgia business cannot buy wind coverage from a private commercial property carrier, it does not go without coverage. The Georgia Underwriting Association, known as GUA, is the state's residual property market, the insurer of last resort for wind and other hard-to-place coastal risk, operating under O.C.G.A. Title 33, Chapter 33. Georgia does not run a dedicated wind pool the way some Gulf Coast states do; GUA fills that role instead, writing property risk that standard carriers in the voluntary market decline because of coastal wind exposure.

A residual market is a state-created insurance pool that exists to write coverage for properties the private market will not take on its own, operating under state insurance law rather than ordinary competition. For example, a small manufacturing building on Georgia's coast that gets non-renewed by its private carrier after a string of regional storm losses, then gets declined by three other carriers during a renewal search, can apply for wind coverage through GUA rather than operating the building uninsured for wind.

GUA coverage addresses the wind and hail portion of a commercial property risk. It does not include flood or storm surge, which are separate exposures covered only by an NFIP or private flood policy, discussed in does commercial property insurance cover flood damage in Georgia. A business using GUA for wind typically still needs a standard commercial property policy, through the private market or another arrangement, for non-wind perils like fire, theft, and equipment damage; whether that coverage is legally required at all is addressed in is commercial property insurance required in Georgia.

GUA availability and pricing depend on the specific property, its location, and its wind mitigation features, such as roof age and bracing. A coverage review can confirm whether a coastal Georgia property qualifies for the voluntary market first, or whether GUA is the applicable path, and can coordinate the wind coverage with the rest of the property program. Coverage is available through Olive Cover; see commercial property insurance and the current carrier list for the private markets checked before a GUA placement.