Q&A About Flood Insurance In NYS

A: YES! You can buy National Flood Insurance no matter where you live if your community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program. In fact, under the National Flood Insurance Act, mortgage lenders must require borrowers whose property is located within a Special Flood Hazard Area to purchase flood insurance as a condition of receiving a federally regulated mortgage loan. National Flood Insurance is not available in designated Coastal Barrier Resources System areas, which are shown on a community's Flood Insurance Rate Maps.

A. You can purchase flood coverage at any time. There is a 30-day waiting period after you've applied and paid the premium before the policy is effective, with the following exceptions:

1. If the initial purchase of flood insurance is in connection with a loan, there is no waiting period. The coverage becomes effective at the time of the loan, provided application and payment of the premium have been made.
2. If the initial purchase of flood insurance is made during the 13-month period following the effective date of a revised flood map for a community, there is a one-day waiting period for any structure within an area that is shown as being in an Special Flood Hazard Area for the first time.

The policy does not cover a "loss in progress," defined by the National Flood Insurance Program as a loss occurring as of 12:01 a.m. on the first day of the policy term. In addition, during a flooding event, you cannot increase the amount of insurance coverage you have.

A. NO! Unfortunately, many homeowners do not find out until it is too late that their homeowners' policies do not cover flooding.

A. Flood insurance is available to protect owners and renters of homes, condominiums, apartments and nonresidential buildings, including commercial structures. A limit of $250,000 of building coverage is available for single-family residential buildings or for residential condominium units. Contents coverage on residential buildings is limited to $100,000, which is also available to renters. Commercial structures can be insured to a limit of $500,000 each for the building and contents. These limits are subject to change.

A. YES! You remain eligible to purchase flood insurance if your home, apartment or business has been flooded before, as long as your community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program. Flood insurance premiums do not go up as a result of your claims history.

A. YES! Even if you live in an area that is not flood-prone, it's advisable to have flood insurance. About a quarter of the National Flood Insurance Program's claims come from outside high flood risk areas. The Program's Preferred Risk Policy, available for just over $260 per year for $100,000 of coverage, is designed for residential properties located in low-to-moderate flood risk zones.

A. Flood Insurance Rate Maps show areas which are subject to predictable flooding from streams, lakes or tidal waters. Areas within one square mile of a stream's headwaters are usually not mapped. Due to the unpredictable nature of some kinds of floods, maps also don't show many areas subject to flooding from localized drainage problems, ice jams, or sheet flooding down a slope. Maps are based on the "100-year" flood, better thought of as the flood that has a one percent or greater chance of occurring in any given year. Larger floods can and do happen.

A. YES! This flood insurance is sold through private insurance companies and agents, and it is backed by the federal government.

A. Yes, it does. The program defines a basement as any area of a building with a floor that is below ground level on all sides. Flood insurance does not cover basement improvements, such as finished walls, floors or ceilings, or personal belongings such as furniture and other contents. It does cover structural elements, essential equipment and other basic items normally located in a basement, as well as cleanup costs. Many of these items are covered under building coverage, and some are covered under contents coverage.The following are covered under building coverage, as long as they are connected to a power source and installed in their functioning location:

• Sump pumps;
• Well water tanks and pumps, cisterns and the water in them;
• Oil tanks and the oil in them, natural gas tanks and the gas in them;
• Pumps and/or tanks used in conjunction with solar energy;
• Furnaces, hot water heaters, air conditioners, and heat pumps;
• Electrical junction and circuit breaker boxes and required utility connections;
• Foundation elements;
• Stairways, staircases and elevators;
• Unpainted drywall and Sheetrock walls and ceilings, including fiberglass insulation;
• Clothes washers and dryers, food freezers and the food in them.

A. NOT REALLY! Before a community is eligible for disaster assistance, it must be declared a federal disaster area. Federal disaster assistance declarations are issued in less than 50 percent of flooding incidents. Most federal disaster assistance is in the form of loans. The premium for an National Flood Insurance Program policy, averaging a little more than $350 a year, is typically less expensive than a single monthly payment on a federal disaster loan. Furthermore, if you are uninsured and receive federal disaster assistance after a flood, you must purchase flood insurance to remain eligible for future disaster relief.

A. One of the program's primary objectives is to guide development away from high-flood-risk areas. Program regulations minimize the impact of structures that are built in Speical Flood Hazard Areas by requiring them to not cause obstructions to the natural flow of flood waters. Also, as a condition of community participation in the National Flood Insurance Program, those structures built within Special Flood Hazard Areas must adhere to strict floodplain management regulations.

A. The program defines covered flooding as a general and temporary condition during which the surface of normally dry land is partially or completely inundated. Two properties in the area or two or more acres must be affected. Flooding can be caused by:

• The overflow of inland or tidal waters;
• The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source;
• Mudslides, i.e., mudflows, caused by flooding, that could be described as a river of liquid and flowing mud; or
• The collapse or destabilization of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water, resulting from erosion, the effect of waves, or water currents exceeding normal, cyclical levels.

A. NO! Rain entering through wind-damaged windows, doors or a hole in a wall or the roof, resulting in standing water or puddles, is considered windstorm, rather than flood damage. National Flood Insurance covers only damage caused by the general condition of flooding (defined above), typically caused by storm surges, wave washes, tidal waves, or the overflow of any body of water over normally dry land areas.

For more information, ask your insurance agent or company, or call the National Flood Insurance Program's toll-free number at 1-888-379-9531, TDD# 1-800-427-5593. Or email [email protected].