Your homeowners or renters policy most likely does not cover flood damage, [City/Town]. FEMA says only 4 percent of homeowners nationwide carry flood insurance.
FEMA estimates one inch of floodwater can cause as much as $25,000 in damage to a home. From 2016 to 2022, FEMA’s average disaster grant was $3,000. Its average flood insurance claim in the same period was more than $66,000. A grant also depends on a federal disaster declaration. Flood insurance pays whether or not one is declared.
Five things to ask your agent:
→ Homeowners and renters policies typically do not cover flooding. Flood insurance is a separate policy.
→ Even if your area has never flooded, nearly every county in the country has flooded in the past few decades.
→ Sewer backup is handled differently. A flood policy covers it only if flooding directly caused it. If you have a basement, ask about this specifically.
→ Only comprehensive auto coverage covers flood damage to your car. A liability-only policy does not.
→ A flood policy usually takes 30 days to go into effect. Don’t wait for a storm to show up in the forecast.
Coverage comes through the National Flood Insurance Program or private insurers. Start at https://www.floodsmart.gov , then ask your agent what your current policies leave out. Have you looked at your flood coverage? Tell us what you found in the comments.
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Seed comments: post each as a separate comment immediately after publishing:
- Comment 1: Has your household ever pulled out your policy and read what it excludes?
- Comment 3: If you’ve been through a flood or a claim, what do you wish you’d known sooner? Share it here for the rest of us.
