What is Flood Insurance and Why Do You Need It?

Flood insurance covers surface runoff water or rising water getting into your home. Flood is not considered a broken pipe inside your house or your toilet overflowing. Those types of things are covered under sudden accidental discharge of water. Flood insurance is something entirely different.

FEMA and most flood policies define a flood as two or more properties or acres of land. If you just got water in your house and you happen to have flood insurance, that would not be covered. It would have to flood your neighbor’s house as well or flood two or more acres of land if you live in the country.

What Does Flood Insurance Cover?

Here are some examples of one-off instances that would be considered flood:

• We have heavy rain and you and several neighbors end up with water in your house.
• The city is working on a water main. It breaks and floods five houses.
• A building is being built and some construction debris clogs up runoff drains. This results in several properties to flood.

Each of these examples are one-off instances in which the homeowners are not in flood plains. This is why you should always carry flood insurance. Even if you’re not in a flood plain, every property out there is subject to flooding. It’s just a matter of having the right circumstances.

Is the City Ever Responsible?

In the example of the water main situation, you might ask if the city would be responsible. The city would not be responsible, because most cities and towns have governmental immunity. This means the city cannot be responsible for damages; it’s part of them doing their jobs.

Hanby Helps

At Hanby, we always recommend carrying flood insurance. It’s not very expensive. Most policies can be purchased for about $300-$350 per year. There are also private flood insurance carriers and FEMA-backed flood insurance carriers. A privately-held flood insurance carrier doesn’t have a cap, so we can insure your property for whatever amount you would like. Whereas a FEMA-backed insurance carrier would only provide up to $250,000 in coverage. We have several options available, and Hanby is here to help!