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Flood Insurance

Will An Unexpected Flood Equal Financial Disaster?

Not having the proper insurance coverage can lead to a financial disaster. You may think you do not need a flood insurance policy if you do not live near a riverbank, coastal area, or flood zone. However, you might be wrong because flooding can occur almost anywhere. In fact, flooding is the most common and widespread natural disaster other than fire. Yet most Americans are unprotected against flood loss.

Your homeowners insurance will not cover you in case of flood damage. Even in cases when your property has been damaged because of melting snow. A flood is defined as "the rising of a body of water and its overflowing onto normally dry land; "plains fertilized by annual inundations". Many homeowners believe that water run off, or back up of sewers would be considered a flood, but that is not the case.

Homeowners can obtain flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) an agency managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and backed by the federal government. In order to purchase flood insurance coverage your community must follow the loss prevention guidelines set forth by FEMA. To find out if your community is a part of the NFIP's, Community Status Book, please visit http://www.fema.gov/fema/csb.shtm.

Homeowners may also be eligible to receive a reduction in flood insurance premiums if their community exceeds the minimum standards of the NFIP floodplain management program. If you would like to know if the community you live in qualifies for a reduction in flood insurance premiums follow the link to FEMA's Premium Reductions for Selected Communities http://www.fema.gov.

The agent who wrote your home or auto insurance policy can most likely write a policy for flood insurance. It does simplify your situation to have one agent handling your flood insurance and your property insurance. If you are shopping for one, it would be wise to ask the agent for a comparison quote on both policies. To obtain a list of private insurance companies that sell and service insurance policies please click on the link to find participating insurance companies.

Sources Cited:
Insurance Information Institute
Insure.com
Federal Emergency Management Agency
National Flood Insurance Program

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