Know how to file a claim after a storm Virginia homeowners, you may have escaped the ravages of hurricanes Hanna and Ike.

But Josephine, Kyle, Laura and Marco are in the lineup -- and they could wreak havoc.

You don't want to find yourself in the same position as the 17,000 or so Katrina homeowners whose estimated $2 billion in claims are still unpaid three years after the disaster, according to Philadelphia insurance attorney Eric D. Gerst.

Gerst, author of "Vulture Culture: Dirty Deals, Unpaid Claims, and the Coming Collapse of the Insurance Industry," called the Katrina experience "the poster child of bad claims."

He said a lot of claims were denied because of a gotcha clause. If damage is caused by wind, the insurers will pay, he said. If it's caused by wind and water, they will not pay.

A lot of people thought they had hurricane coverage when Katrina hit, Gerst said. But when it struck, "it was wind and water, so a lot were denied."

That clause is in most homeowner policies, he said. But people don't understand it.

In addition to gotcha clauses, he said, carriers use "delay, deny and litigate" tactics to get out of paying claims. Some go back after a claim is filed to find something in the claimant's history that voids the coverage, he said.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners said the top three complaints from consumers about their insurers are claim delays, denial of claims and unsatisfactory settlement offers.

Homeowners, if you incur hurricane damage, do everything you can to file a successful claim. Follow these tips from Gerst, Allstate property manager Dennis Hill and the Insurance Information Institute: