Frances King Insurance Agency

111 Solana Road suite B Ponte Vedra Beach FL (904) 273-9838


Flood Insurance

The event of “flood” is NOT a covered occurrence under any Homeowners policy from any company. This is defined as rising water coming into the house from the outside, such as overflow from lakes or rivers, or a storm surge from the ocean. This does not refer to damage from water coming into the house after an opening or hole has been made by wind, nor to damage from water discharge from an appliance or from interior plumbing. Virtually all Homeowners policies do cover those events already.

If you want to be covered for damage from flooding, then you need to purchase a separate flood policy. All basic flood policies written in the U.S. are written through the National Flood Insurance Program, or NFIP, a branch of the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA).Here is a useful link to learn more about this federal flood insurance program, http://www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/pages/index.jsp

FEMA pays insurance companies to write, issue, administer, and handle claims for NFIP.So no matter whose name appears on the policy or to whom you write your premium check, the coverage and premiums will be the same.

FEMA also has “mapped” virtually all of the U.S. to assign flood “zones” based on the degree of flooding risk.Mortgage companies require borrowers to purchase flood insurance in “Special Flood Hazard Areas” (SFHA), which are zone types “A” and “V”.“V” zones are uncommon, so most homeowners who are required to buy flood insurance are in “A” type zones, such as “AH”, “AE”, "A6", etc.  Writing flood policies in these zones requires an Elevation Certificate, a standard document completed by surveyors.

If your house is in the lower risk zone called “X”, then you may be eligible to purchase a Preferred Flood Policy at a lower cost. FEMA says that ONE THIRD of all flood claims paid last year WERE IN LOW RISK ZONES.So just because you are in a low risk zone does NOT mean you can’t experience flooding!

Call the Frances King Insurance Agency today to ask any questions you may have about flood insurance, to get a quote, or to purchase a policy.Except for real estate closings, note that the effective date of coverage is THIRTY DAYS AFTER PURCHASE.