Flood Insurance
Serving Cedar Park, Leander, Houston and surrounding areas
Flood insurance providing protection when your home insurance does not
Just a single inch of water from flooding can cause costly damage to your home. Here’s what you need to know about insuring against damages caused by flooding.
What Protection Does Flood Insurance Offer?
A standard homeowners policy does not cover damages from flooding. A separate flood policy is needed to cover losses to your property caused by flooding, which provides coverage for things such as:
- Structural damage
- Furnace, water heater and central air-conditioning
- Flood debris clean up
- Electrical and plumbing systems
Cost of Flood Insurance Coverage
As a homeowner, you can insure your home for up to $250,000 and its contents up to $100,000 through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). For this $250,000/$100,000 building and contents coverage, yearly premiums average $405 in low- to moderate-risk areas. If your home is located in a high-risk area, our team at Dowd Insurance Agency can help determine your premium.
While it is up to the property owner to decide if they want to cover the building, if you are a renter, you can cover your belongings up to $100,000.
Private Flood Insurance
The majority of flood coverage in the United States is written by the government. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), established in 1968, offers flood coverage to homeowners, renters, and business owners if the community participates in the program. Up until 2012, banks and mortgage companies could only accept an NFIP policy as flood coverage. With the passing of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act in 2012, private flood insurance companies were able to enter the market and offer alternatives to the government program, creating greater coverage options at competitive rates.
Private flood companies can offer enhanced coverage and may even have lower rates for the same coverage compared to an NFIP policy.
Stay Protected
Flood insurance means you’ll be reimbursed for all of your covered losses.
In general, a policy does not take effect until 30 days after you purchase flood insurance. However, if your lender requires flood insurance in connection with the making, increasing, extending or renewing of your loan, there is no waiting period.
For more information on flood insurance, including premium costs, levels of coverage and the flood risk for your area, contact Dowd Insurance Agency today.
Water Losses and Flood Damage
For your losses to be covered under a flood insurance policy, the following definition of a flood applies:
“A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from: overflow of inland or tidal waters; and unusual and rapid accumulation.”
Flood Facts
- Property owners and renters should buy flood insurance even if you aren’t in a high-risk area.
- Your chances of being flooded are much greater than some other risks you face daily.
- If you live in a 100-year floodplain, there’s more than a 1 in 4 chance that you’ll be flooded during a 30-year mortgage. During a 30-year mortgage, you are 27 times more likely to experience a flood than have a fire.
- Just one-inch of water can cause $20,000 or more in damages to your property.
- Your homeowners or renter’s policy typically doesn’t cover flood damage.
- No home is safe from the devastation of a flood; 25% of flood losses occur to homes outside of a high-risk area (category 1 or above).
What About Federal Disaster Assistance?
Federal disaster assistance is only available if the president formally declares a disaster. Even if you do get disaster assistance, it’s often a loan you have to repay with interest.
Get Flood Coverage Today
At Dowd Insurance, we can help you find the best flood coverage for your property through the NFIP or private flood carriers. Protect your home today, contact us for more information about flood insurance.