The only thing worse than enduring significant damage in a hurricane is realizing that your insurance company won’t cover your claim.
According to a Texas insurance group, only about 15 to 20 percent of homeowners in Houston and Corpus Christi are insured for flooding — everyone else was out of luck after Hurricane Harvey struck.
So why do so many people skip the flood insurance? Generally speaking, there are three reasons people don’t bother with flood insurance: they think it won’t happen to them, they assume they’ll receive federal disaster aid, or they think flooding is already covered under their homeowner’s insurance.
Let’s take a closer look at each of these misconceptions and discuss why they’re wrong.
Flood Immunity
Whether it’s because they live on high ground or they’re putting their trust in the distance between their home and the nearest body of water, many people think they’re simply not at risk for flood damage.
Unfortunately, when something like a hurricane hits, everyone is at risk for flood damage. Whether it’s just a couple of inches of water in the basement or your entire house gets washed away, flooding can hit at any time and it doesn’t discriminate based on where you live. It’s best to assume that it could happen to you and prepare accordingly than to consider yourself safe and pay the price later, roof can also be a problem with weather conditions and too much rain being able to damage them, so they need to be repair after, by a roofing company, you can find this site for the best one.
Federal Disaster Aid
Some people figure that if something truly catastrophic happens, they’ll get money from the government to cover the damage. But the truth is that most disaster grants are only about $5,000, hardly enough to replace a house or a car, and anything above that amount is actually a low-interest loan that must be repaid.
So, the free money people assume they’ll get from the federal government isn’t really a solid bet. Even if they get enough to cover their losses, they’ll have to pay it back.
Homeowner’s Insurance
Probably the most common misconception about flood damage is that it’s covered under a standard homeowner’s policy. It’s easy to see how people would assume this; after all, other disastrous events, like house fires, are typically covered.
But a typical homeowner’s policy doesn’t cover flooding at all — instead, flood insurance must be purchased separately.
What’s the Next Step for Homeowners?
If you’re not sure about your policy, read it carefully to see if it covers flood damage. If it does, great! But make sure you know exactly what kind of damage is covered, and whether the protection extends to detached structures on your property (like a garage or a shed).
If your policy doesn’t cover flooding, speak with your agent to confirm why it is not necessary for your home. The extra expense may seem unnecessary, but in the wake of disasters like Harvey and Irma, it’s clear that flood insurance can be crucial even for low-risk homes.