Free Legal Assistance for Iowa Disaster Survivors

DES MOINES, Iowa – Free legal assistance is available to survivors in the nine counties affected by the severe storms and flooding from March 12 through May 16 and included in the presidential disaster declaration: Fremont, Harrison, Louisa, Mills, Monona, Pottawattamie, Scott, Shelby and Woodbury. 

Survivors facing disaster-related legal issues can call 833-885-9876 toll free, 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. local time, Monday – Friday, to request assistance. When connected to the hotline voicemail, callers should leave their name, phone number, brief details of the assistance needed and the county where they are located. Those who qualify are matched with Iowa lawyers who can provide legal help including: 

• Assistance with securing FEMA and other government benefits available to disaster survivors.
• Assistance with life, medical and property insurance claims.
• Help with home repair contracts and contractors.
• Replacement of wills and other important legal documents destroyed in the disaster.
• Assistance in consumer protection matters, remedies and procedures; Counseling on mortgage-foreclosure problems.
• Counseling on landlord-tenant problems.

The toll-free disaster hotline is a partnership among Iowa Legal Aid, The Iowa State Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division and the American Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division. Funding for the hotline comes from FEMA.

Partner organizations also include National Disaster Legal Aid Online and United Policyholders, a national nonprofit consumer-advocacy group that specializes in helping disaster survivors with insurance-claims issues. 

For more information on the Iowa disaster and a variety of recovery resources, log on to: www.floods2019.iowa.gov or call 2-1-1. Additional information can be found at www.fema.gov/disaster/4421.