Just a few inches of water can cause thousands of dollars in property damage. Unfortunately, flood damages are typically not covered under your standard homeowners insurance policy even though about 25% of all flood claims come from low-risk flood areas.
Standard homeowners insurance policies typically cover some types of water damage that originate inside of your home like a broken pipe or a household accident. But water damage that originates outside of your home from a storm or hurricane is usually not covered.
In 2017 during Hurricane Irma, only 14% of the 3.3 million households in the nine Florida counties affected by the disaster had flood insurance coverage, according to data from Pew Charitable Trusts.
Consider getting flood coverage even if your property is in a low-risk flood zone. Remember that there is a 30-day waiting period before a flood policy goes into effect, so it is best to purchase before the beginning of hurricane season which begins in early June.