How to assure your insurance covers wind, water damage from hurricanes

Homeowners face two big problems with hurricanes – wind and water – and separate insurance policies may be needed to cover any damages.

To start, no homeowners insurance policy covers floods. That includes storm surge flooding. A flood insurance policy will be needed, NerdWallet reported.

Homeowners in hurricane-prone states may discover that their home insurance won’t pay windstorm damage claims. Again, a separate policy will be necessary for windstorm insurance.

When filing a claim, you’ll quickly realize a homeowners insurance policy doesn’t cover flood damage caused by a hurricane – or any flooding. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) offers separate flood insurance, NerdWallet reported. Most major insurers provide this NFIP coverage, making it available through your insurance agent.

Standard homeowners policies may cover wind damage even caused by hurricanes. In high-risk coastal states a separate policy might be necessary. Purchase it through your insurance agent or a state-run insurance pool. It might be possible to add a rider to your homeowners policy.

In Florida, homeowners might be able to purchase windstorm coverage and for hail damage from Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

Further complicating insurance coverage, in coastal states including Florida, some insurers may set a separate hurricane and/or windstorm deductible. While the deductible in a homeowners policy is usually a flat dollar amount, like $1,000, windstorm deductibles more often are a percentage of the home’s insured value, NerdWallet reported. The range is typically from 1% to 5%, but may be higher in high-risk coastal states. A home insured for $500,000 with a 5% wind deductible cuts as much as $25,000 from a payment on your claim.

Florida requires insurers to offer hurricane deductible options of $500, 2%, 5% and 10%. But in some cases, those deductibles might rise above 10%.

NerdWallet offers several tips on buying insurance to cover damages caused by hurricanes, including homeowners insurance, flood insurance or windstorm insurance.

First, the coverage should be high enough to pay the entire cost to rebuild your home and replace all your possessions.

With a 30-day waiting period between purchasing coverage and when it takes effect, waiting too long can prove costly. If you try to buy the coverage when a storm is forecast, insurers probably won’t make any adjustments until the storm has passed.

As your policy comes up for renewal, compare quotes to find the most affordable coverage.