Damage vs. Flood Damage: What's the Difference?

December 20, 2017 By admin No comments yet

At first glance, water damage and flood damage might seem to be one in the same. After all, they both involve large quantities of water entering your home or business and causing damage. Here’s the catch, though: one of these types of damages is usually included in a regular insurance policy while the other is not.

Take a closer look at water damage vs. flood damage and what this means for your home or business in the event of an emergency.

Water Damage Insurance Claims

Most of the time, water damage is going to be covered by your homeowner or business insurance policy. However, as far as your insurance company is concerned, water damage has nothing to do with flooding.

So what might a water damage insurance claimcover? These are some of the most common water-related damages that are typically covered by insurance:

Water damage caused by burst pipes
Gradual water seepage due to cracks in the foundation of your home, business or other structure
Mold or rot

[pullquote]Water damage insurance claims typically involve gradual damage caused by water over time.[/pullquote]

Flood Damage Insurance Claims

As odd as it might sound, flood damage is not usually considered a type of water damage. Because of this, most business or homeownerinsurance policies do not cover flood damage, unless you’ve purchased a separate policy specifically for flooding.

If you live in a coastal area in Florida, Texas or other parts of the country where flooding and storm damage are common occurrences, it might be worth investing in separate flood insurance to make sure you’re covered.