Flood Safety Awareness Week is March 15-19
How does flooding affect your area?
Most Americans ignore the risks of flooding, assuming they aren’t in a flood zone. The reality is, floods are America’s number one natural disaster and can happen anytime, anywhere. In fact, 90% of all natural disasters in the U.S. involve flooding.
Middlesex residents are urged to educate themselves on the risks and impacts of flooding during National Flood Safety Awareness Week so they can protect family and property.
The standard flood insurance policy provides coverage for one building per policy. The only exception is 10% coverage for a detached garage. However, the total payment for flood damage to the detached garage and the house together cannot exceed the building policy limit. For coverage, the garage can only be used for parking and storage. Any other use would void this coverage, i.e., if the garage has a workshop, the coverage would not apply. All other buildings on the premises need separate coverage. Policy limits for residential properties is $250,000 and $500,000 for commercial properties.
Contents are not automatically included. If contents coverage is desired, a specific amount must be named and a separate premium charged, but it doesn’t need to be a separate policy. Contents coverage limits are $100,000 for residential policies and $500,000 for commercial policies.
All policies have deductibles for both building and contents coverage (if contents coverage has been purchased).
Strict exclusions of coverage apply in any basement. A basement is defined as any area that is below grade on all four sides. In some cases, sunken living rooms can be defined as a basement. Building coverage in basements is limited to systems that service the building, such as electrical boxes, heat pumps and air conditioners. Contents in basements are not covered with a few exceptions, such as a washer, dryer, freezer and the food in it. Similar exclusions of coverage also apply in any enclosure below an elevated structure if the structure is Post-FIRM.
FIRM stands for Flood Insurance Rate Map. Post-FIRM means built after the effective date of the initial Flood Insurance Rate Map for the community or December 31, 1974, whichever is later.
Damage from mold and/or mildew resulting from the after-effects of a flood is covered, but each case is evaluated on an individual basis. Mold and/or mildew conditions that existed prior to a flooding event are not covered.
For information on emergency preparation for floods, talk to your insurance agent or visit http://www.Ready.gov.
You may decrease or eliminate your flood risk by elevating your dwelling above base flood elevation. Discuss the insurance premium savings available with your insurance agent. Specific construction requirements should be discussed with your local building department. The Middlesex County Building Department may be contacted Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at 758-4305.
