Hurricane and flood insurance smarts

 

Part 2 of Smart strategies net higher returns

 

HONOLULU ADVERTISER September 25, 2005

BY LISA SCONTRAS

Custom Publishing Group

 

High and dry might sound like a pretty good place to be during a hurricane, but it’s the very last place you want to be stranded without your insurance coverage.

 

According to FEMA, flooding is the most common natural disaster in the United States, yet a Wall Street Journal Online article states that only about about one quarter of homeowners in the highest-risk areas nationally purchase flood insurance. Here are some flood facts that can keep your head above water:

 

• Many homeowners wrongly assume their standard homeowners policy will cover them in a flood.

 

•  Between eight and 11 million homeowners live in a designated flood zone, yet only approximately 4.4 million carry federal flood insurance.

 

•  Almost 25 percent of flood insurance claims are paid to victims living outside an established flood zone and in zones labeled low-to-moderate flood risk.

 

•  Only “flood” insurance protects you from “flood” damage.

 

•  The average flood insurance policy premium averages just over $400 a year.

 

•  A home mapped in a high-risk area is five times more likely to suffer damage from a flood than from a fire.

 

• For more information about flood insurance, check floodsmart.gov.

 

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