Two Types of Flood Insurance Coverage
The NFIP’s Dwelling Form offers coverage for: 1) Building Property, up to $250,000, and 2) Personal Property (Contents), up to $100,000. The NFIP encourages people to purchase both types of coverage. Your mortgage company may require that you purchase a certain amount of flood insurance coverage. For information about your specific limits of coverage and deductibles, refer to the Declarations Page in your flood insurance policy. It is also a good idea to review your policy with your insurance agent or company representative.
What Is a Flood?
Flood insurance covers direct physical loss caused by “flood.” In simple terms, a flood is an excess of water on
land that is normally dry. The official definition used by the National Flood Insurance Program is: “A general and
temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two
or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from: Overflow of inland or tidal waters;
Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source; Mudflow*; or Collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood as defined above.” * Mudflow is defined as: “A river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a
current of water.” Other earth movements, such as landslide, slope failure, or a saturated soil mass moving by liquidity down a slope, are not mudflows.