Floods are the most common natural disasters that hit the United States. In fact, no part of the country is safe from the impact of floods. There is every chance that your home might also flood. In such a natural calamity, damage to life and property can be severe if your house isn’t covered under flood insurance. Flood insurance is an important safeguard against significant financial loss.

It is a mistaken belief that a homeowner’s insurance policy covers your home in the event of a flood. In fact, a homeowner’s policy might cover water damage from driving rain, excluding damage from water already on the ground. It is necessary to purchase a separate policy for floods to protect your home from flood damage.

Flood Insurance is a Good Idea

Even if you don’t live near a high flood risk zone, buying flood insurance coverage can buy you peace of mind, as no area is unaffected by flood, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Your home might not always flood from overflowing river, but there are many other opportunities when water on the ground may enter your home, including sewer backups.

According to the NFIP, even an inch of water is capable of causing damages worth $10,000 in a home more than 1,000 square foot.

Things to consider

If you are unsure whether you should opt for flood insurance or not, examine the flood maps designed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to determine the flood risk to your area. The maps can be accessed on www.floodsmart.gov.

• Check if the neighborhood has inundated recently or in the past.
• Determine your personal risk tolerance. If you are somebody who buys extra insurance on expensive accessories, including electronics and appliances, consider buying flood insurance.
• Examine your home inventory to find out the best level of homeowner’s coverage. You will have to replace almost everything if you don’t have coverage.
• Determine the cost to rebuild your home.

Your personal circumstances will help you find out if flood insurance is worth purchasing. Your final decision should be primarily based on the risk posed by flooding to your home and area as well as the value of your home and belongings.

If your home is located in a high risk area, your mortgage lender will require you to purchase flood insurance. Flood insurance can be easily bought from our agency.  NFIP flood insurance is sold through a number of major private insurance companies and certified property insurance agents that sell homeowners or property insurance. Our agency is qualified to sell flood insurance via FEMA and also from private flood insurance carriers.

If you make up your mind to buy flood insurance, remember that it could take at least 30 days for a policy to take effect, therefore, you would get the real worth of the insurance if bought before floodwaters start rising.