Water, Water Everywhere - Brief Article

Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, May, 2000 by Elizabeth Razzi

INSURANCE | Okay, homeowners insurance doesn't cover FLOOD DAMAGE, but what about ...?

WITH THE official start of the 2000 hurricane season just around the corner, it's prime time to make sure you have the proper insurance for your home--just in case. And you don't have to live along a coastline to be at risk. Last year inland flooding spawned by tropical storms and hurricanes inflicted more damage than the storms themselves.

You probably know that ordinary homeowners policies don't cover flood damage. You need special insurance for that, available only through the National Flood Insurance Program. But your homeowners insurance may cover more storm and water damage than you think. "If you do have damage, don't make assumptions about what is covered and what is not," warns Jeanne Salvatore, spokeswoman for the Insurance Information Institute. "Call your agent immediately."

Here's how storm damage is usually handled, according to the institute and officials at State Farm, the nation's largest homeowners insurer:

* A tree falls on your house. Your homeowners policy covers damage to the house and up to $500 to remove the tree.

* A tree falls on your lawn. No coverage for the value of the tree nor the cost of removing it (forget grass seed). But flood insurance will pay to remove debris.

* Your roof is damaqed and rain ruins your floors and furniture. Your policy covers the roof, floor and furniture.

* Flying debris breaks windows and rain damages the indoors. Again, homeowners to the rescue to pay for the windows and the rain damage.

* Flying debris lands in your pool, breaking tiles or the filter. Homeowners covers it.

* Pressure from waterlogged soil cracks the walls of your pool. That's "land movement," which is not covered under your homeowners policy. Pools aren't covered by flood insurance, either.

* Your car is flooded inside your garage. Look to your auto insurance's comprehensive coverage for help.

* High winds knock out your electricity for days, ruining hundreds of dollars worth of food in your freezer. Your homeowners policy may cover it.

* Rising water floods your first floor. You're covered only if you have flood insurance.

* Sewers or drains back up into your house. Usually, you're covered under a homeowners policy only if you have a separate endorsement for sewer or drain backup. Flood insurance will cover the damage if there has been flooding locally.

* Your house is flooded, then a broken gas line starts a fire. The fire triggers coverage under your homeowners policy.

* Part of your yard is washed away. Neither your homeowners nor a flood policy will pay.

* Soil is washed away from around your home's foundation, causing it to crack or shift. No coverage under your homeowners policy. A flood policy would pay only if there was local flooding and the problem occurred within 72 hours of the water receding from your home.