Flood Insurance is NOT – I repeat NOT – part of your standardized Homeowners or Dwelling Insurance policies. The NFIP – National Flood Insurance Program, a Division of FEMA (which is a division of the Dept. of Homeland Security – for what it’s worth), is the sole source for Flood Insurance.
In 1968 Congress created the NFIP (see, not all government spending is bad…) and a is administered with the help of about 90 Private Insurance Companies to offer this coverage to property Owners and Renters.
This flood insurance, which can be purchased through property and casualty insurance agents (such as myself or any Agent at Triton Insurance).
The rates are set and do not differ from company to company or agent to agent. The rates depend on factors which include the date and type of construction of your home, along with your building’s level of risk based on elevation and flood zone.
Flood Insurance is like the proverbial red headed step-child of Insurance, as it often gets overlooked. However, as Hurricane Katrina made so brilliantly, shockingly evident- Flood Insurance can save your ass and assets when the Floods do come.
Many more people in the New Orleans area should have had Flood Insurance, and there were very angry people when they found out that the Standard HO-3 Homeowners Insurance policy did not and does not cover Flood damage. We’ll continue to look into this topic as this Blog moves on, but for now- please be advised that you do not have any Flood coverage without an NFIP Flood Policy in effect.
