While it shows signs of weakening, El Niño is expected to exacerbate storms in the southwest and south well into spring. Unfortunately for some homeowners, the damages their homes could sustain from such inclement weather may not be covered by their policies.
As of Nov. 30, 2015, around 256,000 policies were written under the National Flood Insurance Program in California—an 8.5% increase from the previous year, FEMA said.
Despite the strong enrollment for flood insurance coverage, the policies typically have limitations of their own, and will not necessarily cover for all types of water damage.
"Flood insurance [for property] is available if you live outside a floodplain - provided the community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). More than 22,000 communities currently participate in the NFIP," noted Esurance vice president of product Jeffrey Ill. Ill also added that policyholders with comprehensive car insurance may be covered for flood-related repairs or replacements.
Notably, flood insurance does not cover for landslide-related damages.
The NFIP also said that it usually takes 30 days for a flood insurance policy to take effect.
Ill suggested that homeowners call their homeowners’ insurance companies to confirm whether or not their policies can cover for floods. He also mentioned that damage caused by non-flood sources (such as falling tree branches and flying debris) will likely fall under the coverage of most policies.
