Does Renter Insurance Cover Flood Damage?

I had an extraordinary opportunity this week to talk to the residents of Trinity Bell Garden Apartment Homes in Fort Worth, Texas about severe weather and what they could do to prepare. In preparing for the presentation is that the apartment complex sits on the edge of a flood way. Many times in emergency management we are concerned about homeowners having flood insurance policies, but then we need to stop and ask the question “what about renters insurance?”

To make sure I had all my facts, I went ahead and called an insurance company to get an idea on what we were dealing with. To my surprise, renters insurance does cover flood damage; however, this is not true with all insurance agencies. Some agencies require a special rider be purchased to obtain coverage for flood damage, while others simply roll it into the overall policy agreement.

The big takeaway, and what I passed along this week, people who lease a home, apartment or storage unit need to have an open and honest conversation with their insurance agent about what coverage they have. Even better, is to get it in writing and take a look. If you don’t have flood insurance coverage and live within a floodway with even a small percentage chance of flooding, are you willing to take the risk of having your livelihood shattered by a flood and risk being denied by your insurance company?

I know, it’s another thing on the list of to-do’s that we all have, right behind getting more dog food and cleaning out the gutters, but it just might pay off in the long run. One idea is to sit down for a few hours one day each year (if it’s around a major holiday like new years it can help remind you to do it) and review all of your insurance policies to make sure you have the coverage you want, in the amount you want. It only takes a couple of hours, and it might help save you money with discounts or identify where there might be a gap in your coverage and save a headache later on when time counts.

– Will

To see if you may be in a floodway check out FEMA’s Flood Maps: Here

Here are a few links to Flood Insurance Policies:

• USAA Insurance: Here
• GEICO Insurance: Here
• The National Flood Insurance Program: Here