‘Tis hurricane season, and with the news of storm surges, heavy rainfalls and inadequate drainage, it is important to consider ramifications these can have on your home and/or business. This might include not only your building but your personal property (contents, merchandise, furnishings, etc.). There are multiple strategies you should examine when it comes to your susceptibility to flood and/or wind damage resulting from a hurricane that can be a combination of engineering measures, mitigation plans and last but not least forms of insurance coverage being an obvious option.
The first step is to know if your property or business sits in a flood prone area, next you need to determine if it [your property] has adequate drainage including pumps and is elevated so as to combat rising water levels. How does one find out about these, you may ask. There many tools that can help, such as flood maps, surveys, etc. If you find the prospect of looking into this as frightening as the hurricane or flood itself, you can always ask for help from a professional. An experienced independent advisor can help you determine not only if you have the proper coverage, but also if the risk mitigation policies and procedures that you have in place are adequate.
Commercial insurance for flood risk comes with a higher than normal deductible that increases the amount of your out of pocket costs. Consider this when you have flood losses that aren’t considered catastrophic. Those types of losses could be under any flood specific deductible and your insurance coverage might not even kick in. For example, according to FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) data the average commercial flood claim over the last five years has amounted to just over $85,000. There are ways to supplement a high deductible, if you have one, and give you that peace of mind aside from regular commercially available insurance.
For more information on evaluating your current flood coverage and risk mitigation procedures, please feel free to contact Albert Sica at 732.395.4251 or [email protected].
