Flood Insurance

What is Flood Insurance?

Flood insurance covers damage caused by rising water. Floods can happen anywhere, anytime—not just in coastal areas or near lakes and rivers. Torrential rain, snowmelt, mudslides, dam failures and inadequate drainage systems can all cause flood losses.

There are two types of flood policies: Preferred and Standard. The flood hazard zone you live in determines the type of policy you should buy. If your property is located in a low risk zone, you may qualify for a Preferred Risk Policy, making you eligible for coverage at a lower rate. Low risk policies start as low as $119.

Who Needs Flood Insurance?

The threat is real and flood insurance should be a consideration for all homeowners regardless of where you live. Remember, “low risk” does not mean “no risk”–almost 25 percent of all flood insurance claims come from areas with minimal flood risk. The average flood claim payment is $33,000. The federal government requires mortgaged properties in Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHA) to be insured against flooding. And the rates are set by the government, so they are the same regardless of the carrier you choose.

Primary Coverages

Building

Basic building coverage pays to repair or replace the insured building and its foundation, electrical and plumbing systems, central air conditioning, furnaces and water heaters, refrigerators, stove and built in appliances and most permanently installed items in your home. For more detail see www.FloodSmart.gov.

Contents

Contents coverage is not automatically included in a flood policy. You need to add it, and we recommend that you do so. Contents coverage provides payment for the contents and personal belongings within your home. This includes things like clothing, furniture, electronic equipment, curtains, portable appliances and larger removable appliances such as washers and dryers. There are some exclusions, so discuss this coverage with your agent.

Excess Flood Insurance

Like the Standard and Preferred Flood Insurance policies, Excess Flood insurance provides protection against damage caused by rising water. The difference with Excess Flood insurance is that you can purchase coverage over and above your Standard or Preferred Insurance policy, so that you are more fully covered in the event of a flood claim. In order to be eligible to buy an Excess Flood Policy, there are two conditions that must be met:

• Your Standard or Preferred Flood Insurance Policy must be provided by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) or a company like Bankers that is a Write Your Own (WYO) carrier.
• Your property must be insured for the maximum limits available from the NFIP/WYO.

Deductible

The Excess Flood policy does not have a deductible – it just doesn’t kick in until you have maxed out your Standard Flood policy. This means that the damage to your property must be greater than the maximum coverage allowed by the NFIP in order for the Excess Flood policy to come into play. No further deductibles apply.

Primary Coverages

An Excess Flood policy provides coverage for a single building. Contents coverage is optional. Itemized or scheduled property coverage is not available.

Residential Property

Dwelling coverage is available up to $2,000,000. Optional Contents coverage is available up to $100,000. All limits are in excess of the primary NFIP/WYO flood policy. Eligible types of property include:

• 1-4 family dwellings, tenant or owner occupied
• Residential condominium units and their household contents, except residential condominium buildings that qualify for the Residential Condominium Building Association Policy (RCBAP). Verify your situation with your condominium association
• Owned individually or by a corporate owner

Policy Term

The policy term is 12 months; however, it must line up with the underlying flood policy, so the term may be longer or shorter to adjust the Excess policy to the Flood policy expiration date.