Water damage insurance will help save your property

Insurance for water damage to your home is often part of your overall homeowners policy. Your insurance may cover losses due to a burst pipe or leaky appliance, but it cannot if you are exposed to a flood, tornado or hurricane.

For this type of coverage you will need a separate policy. Unfortunately, many owners recognize this too late. You can choose how much coverage to buy, but get the extra coverage.

Before you go shopping for your policy, decide how much you really need. Do you want replacement value coverage or just actual value coverage? There is a big difference. If you only buy current value, you will pay based on the value of your used items, you will not pay to buy new items. There is a difference in the price of the policies, but it would be worth it if you need to use it.

If while you were sleeping, your pipes froze and burst, your insurance will cover the water damage. However, if you left your home with the heat off while you were on vacation, your insurance will not cover these damages.

If your dishwasher overflows causing extensive water damage to your home, your insurance company will most likely cover the frame and all of its contents, but will not necessarily pay to repair the dishwasher. Any leaky roof that causes problems is usually covered by homeowners insurance.

If your roof leaked due to a natural event such as hail, falling trees or very strong winds, it will be covered as they are covered by water damage insurance. Some of the claims, such as sewer overflows, flooding from an overflowing river or lake, and water seepage (usually seen in basements) are usually not covered by a regular homeowners insurance policy.

If you want to be covered against natural flooding, such as tidal surges, river and stream overflow, and flash flooding, you’ll need to purchase a nationwide flood insurance policy from the federal government. Many people believe that if they don’t live in a 100 or 500 year floodplain, then this is not a policy for them. It is important to know that flooding can occur anywhere outside of known flood zones. Unfortunately, many people simply don’t realize that they must have flood insurance.

You should ensure that you are fully aware of the risk of flooding in your area and the time of year when you are at greatest risk of flooding. Most water damage insurance can take up to a couple of months or even longer to complete and fully activate.