Does My Flood Insurance Cover This????

10/18/2021 (Permalink)

East Baton Rouge Flood Coverage

We often here statements very similar to this after many storms and major hurricanes and it is important to know the details of your policy long before you are dealing with the damage from a storm. Flood insurance coverage is absolutely one of the most misunderstood claims in the insurance industry, hands down. It really comes down to two simple questions for the customer:

• What actually defines a Flood?
• What defines my coverage?

Know your Flood Limits and Know What Is Not Covered?

When it comes to groundwater in the basement of home you are almost never covered, at least not in most general policies. The Insurance companies claim that it is not covered because if it were it would dramatically raise the premiums on everybody and insurance would not be able to be offered. Makes sure your rain spouts are in good working order and use sandbags because you can never go wrong doing your best to protect your property.

Flood coverage almost never even begins until it reaches the first floor of your residence. Flooded basements are almost never covered and if they are the policy is very expensive. I many cases FEMA flood coverage will come through as a supplemental form of coverage in the form of a government assistance program and this can help customer out a lot with damage and restoration charges but before this can happen a geographical disaster must first be declared by the state or region.

If water enters the home from a basement surface drain or a sump pump failure you must have a specific insurance that covers those failures otherwise it will not be covered. If you have these coverages they are often in the $5,000 - $10,000 range and if you have a large area affected this may not cover much of the damage.

If there is a leak in the form of a leaky faucet, toilet or leaking shower your insurance often times will not cover these losses. The insurance companies claim these losses as event which fall under the terms “sudden and incidental.” In the eyes of the insurance company many of these losses are related to maintenance issues and were easily preventable by the owner. If you have any other questions or concerns please give us a call at SERVPRO of East Baton Rouge at (225)753-3434