Flood Insurance

KIMA

Story Published: May 16, 2008 at 6:32 PM PST

By Heather Reese

It doesn’t take a hurricane to cause major flood damage to your home. Even if you live in a low-to-moderate risk area, you could be subject to flooding. But typical homeowners’ insurance policies don’t cover flooding—you need separate flood insurance.

With most insurance, experts say if you have any doubt, don’t buy it. With flood insurance, Consumer Reports say you probably should buy it. To help determine whether you need coverage, go to FloodSmart.gov for a preliminary assessment of your property’s flood risk. If you live in a low-to-moderate risk area, the cost of national flood insurance can be relatively low—under $200 a year.

Flood insurance, which you can get from most insurance agents, will pay up to $250,000 to rebuild your home and up to $100,000 to replace the contents. It usually doesn’t kick in until 30 days from the date of purchase, so don’t wait until bad weather is looming to buy. And be aware, unlike homeowners insurance, you can’t buy a flood policy that will pay more than the policy limit if rebuilding costs run higher than anticipated.

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