Flood Insurance | Save Properties Against Flood And Natural Calamities

Floods are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters in terms of human hardship and economic loss.

As much as 90 percent of the damage related to all natural disasters (excluding droughts) is caused by floods and associated debris flows. Most communities in the United States can experience some kind of flooding. Over the 10-year period from 1988 to 1997, floods cost the Nation, on average, $3.7 billion annually. The long-term (1940 to 1999) annual average of lives lost is 110 per year, mostly as a result of flash floods.

Flooding occurs in known floodplains when prolonged rainfall over several days, intense rainfall over a short period of time, or an ice or debris jam causes a river or stream to overflow and flood the surrounding area. Melting snow can combine with rain in the winter and early spring; severe thunderstorms can bring heavy rain in the spring and summer; or tropical cyclones can bring intense rainfall to the coastal and inland states in the summer and fall.

Flash floods occur within six hours of a rain event, or after a dam or levee failure, or following a sudden release of water held by an ice or debris jam, and flash floods can catch people unprepared. You will not always have a warning that these deadly, sudden floods are coming. So if you live in areas prone to flash floods, plan now to protect your family and property.

As land is converted from fields or woodlands to roads and parking lots, it loses its ability to absorb rainfall. Urbanization increases runoff two to six times over what would occur on natural terrain. During periods of urban flooding, streets can become swift moving rivers, while basements and viaducts can become death traps as they fill with water.

Several factors contribute to flooding. Two key elements are rainfall intensity and duration. Intensity is the rate of rainfall, and duration is how long the rain lasts. Topography, soil conditions, and ground cover also play important roles. Most flash flooding is caused by slow-moving thunderstorms, thunderstorms repeatedly moving over the same area, or heavy rains from hurricanes and tropical storms. Floods, on the other hand, can be slow or fast-rising, but generally develop over a period of hours or days.

• Procure a flood insurance policy. Keep insurance policies, documents, and other valuables in a safe-deposit box.
• Avoid building in a floodplain unless you elevate and reinforce your home.
• Raise your furnace, water heater, and electric panel to higher floors or the attic if they are in areas of your home that may be flooded.
• Construct barriers such as levees, beams, and flood walls to stop flood water from entering the building.
• Seal walls in basements with waterproofing compounds to avoid seepage through cracks.

You may be required by your lender to buy flood insurance if you have a federally backed mortgage loan and the building is located in a high-risk flood area. And your lender may, at its own discretion, require that you buy flood insurance even if your building is outside the high-risk flood area. You may also be required to buy flood insurance as a condition of receiving Federal disaster assistance after federally declared flood disaster.

There is usually a 30-day waiting period, after applying and paying the premium, before the flood insurance policy becomes effective.

You can purchase flood coverage at anytime; however, a flood policy does not cover a loss in progress.

There are approximately one hundred Insurance companies which offer Flood Insurance, besides National Flood Insurance.