HHII is a grassroots, church-based non-profit of over 400 members, established as a branch of Ecumenical Ministries in Fairhope, AL. We exist to educate and empower community leaders to create reform that makes insurance affordable, reliable, and responsive—ultimately, keeping our communities resilient after catastrophe. HHII’s most significant achievement to date was the restructuring of the Alabama Wind Pool, in partnership with Governor Bentley, Coastal AL legislators, and the Department of Insurance. This restructure is a bold paradigm shift that puts the homeowner’s needs first.
What we've accomplished
FALL 2008 - we organized a gathering of over 500 people to demand that Alabama legislators take action on the wind insurance crisis.
MARCH 2009 - we traveled to Montgomery to testify before the joint Banking and Insurance committee of the Alabama congress.
NOVEMBER 2009 - over 200 people gathered with us to hear our legislators promise to sponsor a bill that would allow the public to see premiums and claims by county, with the goal of making the Department of Insurance more transparent and accountable.
JANUARY 2010 - HHII began organizing multi-state conference calls with other grassroots organizations as a way to establish a unified network of citizens working to solve this insurance crisis.
MARCH 2010 - HHII crafted the DOI transparency bill and held a public hearing.
MAY 22, 2010 - HHII had a Gubernatorial Forum where all candidates present affirmed their support for transparency in the DOI.
2011 - HHII established the Gulf Coast / East Coast Coalition, a network which now links grassroots advocacy organizations from 9 states across the southeastern U.S.
2012 - Legislative session, the Clarity Bill was passed almost unanimously.
2012 - HHII served on the Alabama Governor's Affordable Homeowners' Insurance Commission in order to represent the people’s needs in a space dominated by representatives from insurance industry.
2012 - Designed the Coastal Insurance Work Group so that consumers had equal power in decision making. Nine months of study and strategizing resulted in the Alabama Wind Pool shifting their purpose from being last-resort insurance to being the first-choice insurance – with premiums reduced up to 47%, lower deductibles, and plans that cover mold damage.
JULY 2014 - HHII was named Money Magazine’s Alabama and Louisiana Money Hero.
2017 - We analyzed Clarity Law data and are currently working to build an understanding of its implications among coastal leadership. We intended to use this data to guide our work as members of the Advisory Board of the Alabama Center for Insurance Information and Research.