When it comes to water damage in your home, you just don’t have the luxury of sitting back and “thinking” about what to do.
The longer you wait, the more damage it will do to your home and the more health problems it will cause for you and your family.
Simply put, time is not on your side, and you need to take action… fast!
Most insurance policies require that you take do so within 48 hours.
This is because molds can begin growing within 24 to 48 hours of a water event. Stopping the flow of water and drying out materials as soon as possible reduces the potential for mold growth. Water damage claims that include active mold growth involve significantly higher costs than water damage claims without mold.
Water damage is one of the most common reasons people make claims on their home insurance. Burst pipes, leaky appliances, and flooded basements are just a few of the ways you could discover exactly what is and is not covered by your home insurance policy.
Water damage and homeowners’ policies can be a touchy situation.
Generally, the damage caused by water will be covered, but whatever causes the damage, say a leaking dishwasher hose, may not be. So your insurer might pay to replace a carpet damaged by your dishwasher leak, but you’ll have to pay to replace or repair the hose.
If a sudden, unforeseen problem such as a frozen pipe or hose leads to water damage, your homeowners insurance usually covers both repairs to the broken pipe and to your home and furnishings.
You’ll need to consult your individual policy to find out exactly what you are, and are not covered for.
Here are several common water-damage scenarios and their insurance consequences, taken directly from insure.com.
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Scenario No. 1: The temperature drops to 10 below zero, causing your water pipes to freeze and burst. Your floor is now covered in 6 inches of water.
Are you covered? Yes, you are covered for water damage from burst pipes, but most policies won’t cover you if you’ve left the house unoccupied and without heat. If that’s the case, your claim could be denied because you’ve failed to perform the necessary maintenance that would prevent the accident.
Scenario No. 2: Water leaks from your backyard pool, ruining your manicured lawn and flooding your basement.
Are you covered? The damages to your basement are covered, but only for the building itself and not for its contents. That means your wallpaper, paint, or carpeting will be replaced, but not that antique sofa you had in storage.
Your lawn is a different story. Coverage for lawns is on a “named perils” basis, which means you are only covered for damages that arise from certain events. Swimming pool leakage is not one of them.
Swimming pools are not covered by standard homeowners policies, so you must make repairs to the pool out of your own pocket.
Scenario No. 3: Your washing machine overflows, flooding the basement.
Are you covered? Yes, but again, the extent to which you are covered depends on your insurer’s view of the problem: Did you fail to maintain the washer properly, or did sudden, unforeseen damage cause the flood?
“Most of the time, if an appliance breaks and water goes all over, insurance covers it. In the case of a washing machine, you might need to purchase replacement parts out of your own pocket because they were not maintained correctly, but the damage to your basement is covered,” says Griffin.
Scenario No. 4: A sewer backs up, flooding your basement.
Are you covered? Probably not. Some home insurance policies automatically include coverage for sewer and drain backups, but most do not. Special endorsements are available, at added cost, for sewers and drains. Read your policy carefully to find out whether you have the endorsement.
Scenario No. 5: Water seeps from the ground into your basement, damaging your foundation and interior.
Are you covered? No. Seepage is considered a maintenance problem, not “sudden and accidental” damage, and is excluded from homeowners insurance coverage.
Scenario No. 6: During a heavy rainstorm, water leaks through your roof. The roof is damaged, as is furniture.
Are you covered? Somewhat. While you might not be reimbursed for roof repairs, because that’s a house-maintenance issue, the water damage to your home is covered. The damage to your furniture is not covered, because rainwater leakage is not one of the “named perils” for which the contents of your house are covered.
If something more drastic leads to the roof leak (your neighbor’s tree falls on the roof, for example), the damage to your roof, home and belongings is covered. (In the tree example, your policy reimburses you up to a certain amount, usually around $500, for the cost of removing the tree.
Scenario No. 7: Your bathtub overflows.
Are you covered? Yes. You are even covered, if the bathtub overflowed because you forgot to turn off the faucet.
Scenario No. 8: A nearby lake or river overflows its banks, causing a flash flood in your living room.
Are you covered? No. Flood damage is not covered by homeowners insurance. You must purchase flood insurance from the federal government. You can purchase flood insurance, as long as your community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program.
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Your responsibilities, as outlined in most residential property insurance policies, include, but are not limited to:
• Give prompt written notice to the insurer of the facts relating to the claim
• Protect the property from further damage
• Make reasonable and necessary repairs to protect the property
• Keep an accurate record of repair expenses
Your actions should include, whenever possible:
• Stop the water leak/flow
• Remove standing water and begin drying the area
• Photograph the damaged property
• Remove water soaked materials
• Keep removed materials and move them to a secure, dry and well-ventilated area, or outdoors
• Protect repairable and undamaged items from further damage
• Keep an activity log, including a record of all contact with your insurance company
• Keep all receipts
• Don’t throw away removed or damaged materials until instructed by your insurance company
• Don’t jeopardize your safety
• Don’t make large structural or permanent repairs
• Don’t exceed personal capabilities
By following these guidelines, you’ll be well on your way to properly taking care of any water damage situation in your home.
Here’s to your success,
Kevin Thompson
P.S. My next no-charge consumer awareness tele-class is just around the corner. If you want to participate, just use the link above to register.