Since its creation, Mother Earth has unleashed natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, storms, bush fires and more upon us. The United States has had its fair share of floods and storms in the recent years and anyone who has experienced it will tell you that it can be very damaging to the property and very expensive to repair. You might think, ‘I have insurance, nothing to worry right?’ BUT NO, homeowner’s insurance DOES NOT cover flooding and water seepage unless you have flood insurance.
What Homeowner’s Insurance Covers
A Georgia-area property & casualty insurance agent recently explained the kind of losses and damage that homeowner’s insurance will cover: Homeowner’s insurance protects you from sudden and accidental losses, such as fire, theft and hail damage. Unfortunately, basement water damage is neither sudden nor accidental, unless you’re in a flood zone and have flood insurance. It’s really a homeowner’s maintenance issue, just like keeping the interior of your maintained or your home in good condition.
You can add endorsements to your policy to cover sewer back-ups or burst pipes or failed sump pumps but even those are limited in what they cover. The best thing you can do is to keep your basement dry and well-maintained.
What Homeowner’s Insurance Does Not Cover
Many people do not know this, but flood insurance DOES NOT cover water damage below ground level. Flood insurance is only available to anyone who lives in a community that takes part in the national flood insurance program and it only protects above-ground parts from flood damage and that also requires many conditions to be fulfilled.
Keeping Your Home Safe From Natural Disasters
So, you must be wondering what the best way is to keep your home safe and protected from such disasters. The best way to protect your basement or crawl space is to waterproof it with a waterproofing membrane system. You can also replace any old sump pumps you may have with a quality cast-iron model and as an additional safeguard, add a battery backup system to use if there is a power failure during basement flooding.
Furthermore, a basement waterproofing contractor will be your best source of help and information preventing costly problems. At The Waterproof Group waterproofing and foundation repairs, we’ve provided basement waterproofing services for thousands of basements across Georgia for years and we’d be happy to add yours to that list.
If you have questions about your basement, please call The Waterproof Group for a FREE inspection at 678-223-4948 or contact us online.
