Flood Insurance: What Should You Know?

2006-10-17

Floods are considered the most common among all kinds of natural disasters ever to be encountered. It not only occurs in flood-driven areas during a storm or a rainy season, but it can happen anywhere, anytime, whether or not you and your family or your business is prepared. Annually, floods contribute to around almost three billion of damaged property in the country, including buildings and homes. Ongoing constructions of buildings and development of land contributes to the increase of peril and hazards with strong currents and tempestuous rains bringing down debris and moving earth at the expense of its owners and the rest of the communities living in nearby areas. Known causes of flooding include freezing weather conditions with melting snow, stormy weather and heavy downpour of rain, windstorms, and hurricanes. With the latest onslaught of tragedies brought about by Hurricane Katrina, homeowners all over the United States have thought long and hard about the risks of purchasing or owning property. In the face of eventual catastrophe, people have regarded floods as one of the most hazardous natural calamities to have struck the nation.

Around a quarter of all insurance claims filed by victims of floods were from locations where there are little or medium risk for floods. Whether the location of your home or your business is a high risk area or not, you must continue to ensure the protection of your family, your business, and your property by getting flood insurance.

Flood insurance is an important and crucial factor in securing property from the damages incurred by floods. Homeowners must remember that flood insurance is not covered by their homeowners’ insurance, such that the latter considers damages incurred by strong heavy winds and broken debris, but the former supports damages brought about by flood itself. If you are a homeowner, you must think decisively about getting flood insurance. Remember that one cannot get one in the course of upcoming emergency or calamity, and that flood insurance maintains that it needs at least a month or at least 30 days to be effective and be implemented.

Some people might say that they can always rely on the Federal Emergency Maintenance Association, also known as FEMA to help support them in times of natural disaster, but the truth is that FEMA can only offer help if and only if the President of the United States has declared the area in a state of national emergency. Also, the funds offered by FEMA are presented in the form of a loan, thus including interest, and will take a long time to be processed before people claiming it can use it. Also, remember that having your property in a federally proclaimed high risk area means you are required to get flood insurance.

So what does flood insurance cover, you ask. Flood insurance considers damages to property due to rising waters from the ground up, and does not limit it to storms and hurricanes but also to the rise of tidal waters such as overflowing rivers or lakes, as well as a mudflow from unearthed trees or sods based on mountain tops and hills brought down by heavy rains and winds. There are different standard kinds of property covered by flood insurance. First off, is structural damage to your property, which includes the breaking down of property including debris caused by floods, as well as floorings and floor surfaces like carpets and tiled floors. It also includes your bathroom fixtures such as the water heater, your room air conditioner, and your furnace. Even furniture ruined by flood is covered by flood insurance. These include clothes, accessories that have value such as watches and other jewelry, electronic property such as computers and digital cameras, couch, beds, and even collectible items such as pieces of artwork. General property includes buildings that are residential in nature, housing more than four families, and those buildings used for businesses, educational institutions, and places of worship such as churches. For those who are owners of condominiums, there is a special policy form called the Residential Condominium Building Association Policy Form, also known as RCBAP.

How much does flood insurance cost to protect their homes? The amount you should shell out to secure your home or property from flooding is dependent on the area or location of your property as well as the terms of coverage in your flood insurance policy that you wish to acquire. Flood insurance generally will require around $200 to $3000 termed annually. One can have up to a quarter of a million dollars worth of flood insurance claimed for homeowners. Business properties can do so for up to half a million dollars.

Now that you know the importance of flood insurance, don’t risk your family and your businesses. Protect your property with flood insurance.

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