Flood Threat and Map ...

[TooFarTampa]

I disagree. Not all homes need to be insured for Flood Insurance.

Every homeowner needs to make an informed decision about their situation.

That being said, Flood Insurance generally is not very expensive so I would encourage folks to err on the side of caution.

We are 30 feet up and 200 yards from the beach (maybe a bit less), but we carry flood insurance because there is nothing between us and the Gulf. The odds of a major hurricane causing a wall of water to wash into our home are very, very slim, yet we simply cannot afford the risk. That $317 is worth it to us, even if it seems silly to others.

 

[Uncle Timmy]

My house sits 45? above sea level.

My house is on top of a rise with land sloping away from it on all sides.

My house is raised above grade by as much as 4? at the highest side.

My house sits on very porous sand which does not hold water.

My house does not have Flood Insurance.

The premise that I should get flood insurance to protect against a 50? wall of water/ tidal wave that may sweep in from the Gulf just doesn?t hold water, (pun intended).

I believe that most people in our area need to have Flood Insurance. But, again, -NOT ALL HOMES NEED FLOOD INSURANCE.

As with everything, please make an informed decision with regards to your own situation.

 

[Smiling JOe]

I seem to recall battles between the insurance companies regarding who had to pay for water damage from wind driven rain. The wind insurance companies were saying that the damage was from water and that the homeowner needed flood insurance to cover it. As Uncle Timmy said, if you are in an A or AE flood zone where flood insurance is not required, the cost of coverage is cheap, and this could maybe fill in any gaps in that wind coverage which might arise from wind driven rain.

 

[Mango]

We are 30 feet up and 200 yards from the beach (maybe a bit less), but we carry flood insurance because there is nothing between us and the Gulf. The odds of a major hurricane causing a wall of water to wash into our home are very, very slim, yet we simply cannot afford the risk. That $317 is worth it to us, even if it seems silly to others.

Not silly at all TFT. I would do the same in your situation. ;-)

 

[Beach Runner]

We have flood insurance, yet we are *not* (edited from earlier typo) in a flood zone. We decided this after we heard about so many people on the Gulf Coast who had their claims denied after Katrina. The insurance companies were saying that their damage was caused by water, not wind. Hello, if the wind blows off your roof or your doors and windows aren't totally secure, you will have water damage. Flood insurance is so inexpensive that so don't see why everyone who is "beach close" doesn't get it. Just my two cents.

 

[Cheering472]

Heck I have flood insurance all the way up here! I'm a nervous Nellie about that stuff. I don't want to give the insurance companies a way to wiggle out of a claim. Cover all your bases if you can afford it everyone.

 

[mf]

we bought all the insurance we could!
considering what criminals they are you have no idea whose going to honor your policy and who isn't.

better safe than sorry. and even if i'm sorry, it won't be for lack of trying!

 

[Indigo Jill]

We have flood insurance, yet we are *not* (edited from earlier typo) in a flood zone. We decided this after we heard about so many people on the Gulf Coast who had their claims denied after Katrina. The insurance companies were saying that their damage was caused by water, not wind. Hello, if the wind blows off your roof or your doors and windows aren't totally secure, you will have water damage. Flood insurance is so inexpensive that so don't see why everyone who is "beach close" doesn't get it. Just my two cents.

Exactly, Beach Runner. If a hurricane hits (or even straight line winds or a tornado for that matter), blows off your roof and it rains for a week after, causing "water damage", your homeowners won't cover the damages other than the roof/structural damages - or at least that is my understanding. In New Orleans, the water damage was caused by "rising" water - again, another scenario that could happen and why flood insurance is a smart way to go.

We live in flood zone X, are on pilings (short pilings - I'd say our home is raised about 3 feet) and we have purchased the flood insurance for $317. I don't know why anyone living in a coastal area wouldn't have flood insurance even if they aren't in a flood zone and aren't required to have it.

 

[Uncle Timmy]

Exactly, Beach Runner. If a hurricane hits (or even straight line winds or a tornado for that matter), blows off your roof and it rains for a week after, causing "water damage", your homeowners won't cover the damages other than the roof/structural damages - or at least that is my understanding. In New Orleans, the water damage was caused by "rising" water - again, another scenario that could happen and why flood insurance is a smart way to go.

I don't know why anyone living in a coastal area wouldn't have flood insurance even if they aren't in a flood zone and aren't required to have it.

Maybe some of you need to brush up on Flood versus Homeowner's Insurance.

From the Government website FloodSmart.gov:

Here's how "flood" is defined by the National Flood Insurance Program:
"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 the policyholder's property) from:

• Overflow of inland or tidal waters; or
• Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source; or
• Mudflow; or
• Collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood as defined above."

So, in plain English, a flood is an excess of water (or mud) on land that's normally dry.
Floods often happen when bodies of water overflow or tides rise due to heavy rainfall or thawing snow. But you don't have to live near water to be at risk of flooding. A flash flood, which can strike anywhere without warning, occurs when a large volume of rain falls within a short time.



If a Hurricane blows your window out and rain gets your carpet wet, that is NOT covered by Flood Insurance. If your roof blows off as a result of Tornado or Hurricane and your house gets soaked, that's NOT covered by Flood Insurance.

Flood Insurance is for inundation due to rising ground water.

 

[TooFarTampa]

Uncle Timmy is right, that a lot of water damage caused by hurricanes would be covered by wind insurance. But there are gray areas. When I purchased flood insurance on our Tampa home (also $317 for 250K coverage) I pressed USAA about what would happen if our home were wiped out by a massive hurricane that rolls up Tampa Bay. Our home would probably take $450-$500K to rebuild. Say it's a Cat 4 or 5 and struck in the sweet spot ... with a storm that major, you have to assume the winds would do a ton of damage also. If almost nothing is left, how could you tell what was flood and what was wind? Did I really need more than $250K in flood insurance?

The USAA rep told me that in that case, the adjusters would take into account damage from both sources and part of the payment would come from flood, part from wind. I actually believe USAA would do this because I consider them to be an ethical company. I wonder if that holds true for all. I know that the odds are incredibly slim of this happening (there has never been standing water on my street and my neighbor has lived here for 50 years!) but I still think the $250K flood limit is too low. Construction costs have gone WAY up in the past 10 years and it does not cover as much as it used to.