Think You Don’t Need Flood Insurance? Think Again
No home is completely safe from potential flooding. When just one inch of water in a home can cause up to $25,000 in damage, flood insurance can be the difference between recovery and financial devastation. Flood insurance brings you peace of mind, even if…
You already have a homeowners insurance policy.
Most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage. Only flood insurance covers the cost of rebuilding after a flood.
Your community has never flooded.
Flooding can happen anywhere at any time. Poor drainage systems, summer storms, melting snow, neighborhood construction, and broken water mains can all result in flooding.
In high-risk areas, there is at least a 1 in 4 chance of flooding during a 30-year mortgage.
You live outside of the high-risk flood area.
Even though flood insurance isn’t required for your property, flooding can happen to anyone. In fact, from 2014 to 2018, policyholders outside of high-risk flood areas filed over 40 percent of all NFIP flood insurance claims and required one-third of federal disaster assistance for flooding.
You’re renting a property.
It’s likely your landlord has flood insurance that covers the building, but not its contents. Affordable, contents-only flood insurance will help you protect the items inside of your unit in the event of a flood.
Your home flood damage could be covered by federal disaster assistance.
FEMA’s Individual and Household program is only available if the President declares a major disaster declaration, and most flood events do not result in a declaration. Disaster assistance typically comes in the form of loans that must be repaid — with interest!
Disaster assistance from FEMA and the U.S. Small Business Administration is designed to kick-start recovery but is not enough to restore your home to its pre-disaster condition or to replace your treasured household items.
Flood insurance does not have to be paid back, and it is designed to restore your property to its pre-disaster condition. There is no better way to protect the life you’ve built than with NFIP flood insurance.
