3 Reasons to Stop Ignoring Flood Insurance
Let’s face it. Floods have haunted our human existence since the invention of… …well… …water. And really, it’s a scary thought. The very thing we need to sustain life gathers in large quantities to destroy everything we’ve built. No, a little water never hurt anyone, but a lot can cause some serious damage.
Perhaps this is the reason why many homeowners take an “out-of-sight out-of-mind” approach to the subject of flood insurance. And really, I can respect that. I mean, come on. The images of flood victims in the newspapers? That’s the stuff of nightmares for ANYbody, much less a homeowner! However, ignoring it won’t make the problem go away, and it’s a bigger problem than most homeowners would like to admit.
Here are 3 reasons why the excuse of “It’ll never happen to me” just doesn’t fly.
1) We’re Human Beings
As people, we have two things going against us. Strike One. We like to sprawl and settle into places, changing the landscape as we go. Strike Two. We love technological progress. While not bad things in and of themselves, they have serious repercussions on the way our environment handles flood waters.
A flood is simply a natural phenomenon that occurs when soil or waterways just aren’t prepared to handle a massive influx of water. There’s no place for the water to go, so it rises. Nature has some pretty neat ways of dealing with floods all on its own. Vegetation keeps the soil porous to allow for drainage, and wetlands and waterways keep the water on a constant outflow.
But because we like to fix things that aren’t broken, we deplete our soil of vegetation and dam up rivers and other waterways. When we tear down our natural defenses to floods, guess what we get? You’ve got it.
Floods! In places where they normally shouldn’t be!
“Oh, but it never floods in my area!” you might say. “I shouldn’t need flood insurance!” Uh huh. Give us time. We’ll find a way to make it happen.
2) It Doesn’t Take Much
When thinking of floods, the first image that probably pops into your head is that of flood waters rising to the tops of houses and people sitting on top of their roofs waiting for emergency vehicles to come to their rescue.
Truth is, though, water doesn’t have to rise even THAT high to cause major damage to your home. Just a one inch flood in a 1,000 square foot home could cause losses of up to $10,600. That’s $10,600 that your standard homeowner’s policy very likely doesn’t, and won’t, cover.
Think flood insurance premiums hurt your pocketbook? Think again!
3) It Happens When You Least Expect It
There’s a funny little statistic when it comes to lightning storms. The majority of people hit by lightning strikes were standing at the edge of the storm while it was calm and there was hardly a cloud in the sky. “A bolt from the blue”, as it were.
The same thing happens with floods. Most people want to wait until the signs point to a significant source of danger, but the truth is that flooding happens when you least expect it, and can often be very unpredictable.
If you’re a homeowner, you literally cannot afford to ignore flood insurance. Floods happen far more often than you’d think, cause more damage than wind and termites combined, and can occur in the unlikeliest of places. The earth’s surface is 71% water, we are human beings, and floods aren’t going away any time soon. Start the conversation soon. Not talking about flood insurance doesn’t diminish the fact that you need it.
More Choices™!
First Baldwin Insurance
Sources:
education.seattlepi.com
universetoday.com
floodsmart.gov
