Harlingen Resident Questions Flood Insurance Coverage

by Tony Vindell/LFN

A Harlingen resident who lives on one of the areas most affected by the June flood said his flood insurance coverage is now giving him one of the biggest headaches of his life.

Mike Robles, who lives on Traxler Way along Bass Boulevard said his home got a total of 18 inches of rainfall, and he had to tear the sheetrock off all the walls and lost a lot of items like furniture and many personal belongs.

“I have flood insurance coverage,” he said. “But guess what?”

He said an insurance adjustor from Houston inspected the house and, after doing his paperwork, he asked Robles for proof of the previous home repairs he did after the flood of June 2018.

“He wanted to see receipts from everything,” he said. “I told him I don’t have much.”

Robles said he usually hires a handyman next door and buys materials wherever he finds them and paid cash in most cases.

“Well, he then told me to get copies from my bank showing how much money I withdrew last year. That is ridiculous.”

Robles said his insurance premium went from about $400 to $1,800 today after he filed last year’s claims.

“This is crazy,” he said. “We need to settle this and get our lives back to normal. We have been eating at the convenience store down the road for nearly a week.”

On Bass Boulevard, Charles Gentry was seen cleaning up the mess left by the raising waters.

Asked if he has flood insurance, he said, “Yes, we do. It’s nice to have it but look at this mess.”