A few years ago, not many people even really considered flood insurance, but the impact of hurricane Katrina, and the news coverage that followed it, changed that.
It is now at the forefront of many people's minds when it comes to considering how well protected financially their, and their family's, home and belongings are.
A common mistake is to assume that all damage caused by water is covered under a flood policy, when this is not the point of view that insurance companies take.
By just relying on what you think is good common sense, you are actually leaving yourself wide open, as insurance policies do not follow the rules of common sense.
Most flood insurance policies are really specific and technical, with a common stipulation being that a payout will only be made for damage caused by water coming from a source that does not normally come into contact with your home.
Therefore, you would be covered if a nearby river overflowed and flooded your house, but maybe not if the flooding was caused only by excessive rain.
Take, for example, flooding caused as a result of water seeping up through the ground and into your basement.
You would assume that this would definitely be covered by a flood insurance policy, and whilst it would be by some, it would be not by others, which may say that it was not an unexpected occurrence based on where you live.
In many cases, in order to be considered flooding, water damage has to affect at least a two-acre area.
Therefore, water damage caused by rain coming through the roof or a water pipe breaking in your home is more likely to be covered by your home insurance.
Another area where people often get caught out is by taking out flood insurance at the last minute, as news begins to break that severely bad weather is expected.
Quite often, flood insurance policies have a 30-day waiting period before becoming active, so those who do this are actually not covered at all.
It is now at the forefront of many people's minds when it comes to considering how well protected financially their, and their family's, home and belongings are.
A common mistake is to assume that all damage caused by water is covered under a flood policy, when this is not the point of view that insurance companies take.
By just relying on what you think is good common sense, you are actually leaving yourself wide open, as insurance policies do not follow the rules of common sense.
Most flood insurance policies are really specific and technical, with a common stipulation being that a payout will only be made for damage caused by water coming from a source that does not normally come into contact with your home.
Therefore, you would be covered if a nearby river overflowed and flooded your house, but maybe not if the flooding was caused only by excessive rain.
Take, for example, flooding caused as a result of water seeping up through the ground and into your basement.
You would assume that this would definitely be covered by a flood insurance policy, and whilst it would be by some, it would be not by others, which may say that it was not an unexpected occurrence based on where you live.
In many cases, in order to be considered flooding, water damage has to affect at least a two-acre area.
Therefore, water damage caused by rain coming through the roof or a water pipe breaking in your home is more likely to be covered by your home insurance.
Another area where people often get caught out is by taking out flood insurance at the last minute, as news begins to break that severely bad weather is expected.
Quite often, flood insurance policies have a 30-day waiting period before becoming active, so those who do this are actually not covered at all.
