According to the Insurance Information Institute, 1 in 50 American homes will file a water damage claim every year. However, your homeowners’ insurance will only pay for water-related damages under certain circumstances.
Homeowner policies are fairly specific about what they don’t cover. Your homeowner’s policy won’t cover damages caused by flash floods or storm surge, in other words, if the water comes from outside your home, it will not be covered by your standard homeowner’s policy. You need a separate, government-backed flood insurance policy to pay for those damages. Additionally, if you don’t have an endorsement on your policy, your homeowner’s insurance probably won’t pay for damages caused by a sewer that backs up into your house.
Homeowner’s policies will generally pay for water damage caused by sudden, accidental water discharge from a water source inside your home or accidental sewer backup or overflow (you may need an endorsement for this claim). The home and contents clause in your homeowner’s insurance will usually cover these instances. These include events like burst pipes, water-heater leaks and appliance malfunctions. For example, if your water heater ruptures, floods your attic and inundates your ceilings, your homeowner’s policy will probably cover the damages.
However, note that the policy states “sudden accidental water discharge,” not gradual water damage. Gradual water damage occurs over time, slowly. This means if you allow a pipe or faucet to slowly leak over time and it causes water damage in your home, your homeowner’s insurance may not cover the associated damages. In insurance-industry terms, this constitutes negligence and insurance companies don’t pay for damages that result from delayed maintenance. That’s one reason you want to give us a call if you suspect a leak, even if you can’t see it. We can find the leak with our special thermal imaging equipment.
Insurance and Mold
Most insurance policies won’t cover the cost to remediate mold, regardless of how the water damage occurred. So mold, rotting or corrosion, are all considered to be conditions that occur from gradual water damage. So if a pipe breaks and you clean up the water, but not the overall moisture in your walls and that results in mold, the pipe break will be covered, but the not the resulting mold. If a tree falls on your roof during a hurricane and it lets water into your home, you would most likely be covered for the roof repairs and water damage, but if the water damage is not thoroughly dried out and results in a mold issue, the mold won’t be covered. That’s why it’s important to your health and your bank account to let Spectrum Cleaning & Restoration of Fort Myers dry out your home as soon as possible. You’ll avoid dealing with the unpleasant task of paying out of pocket to remediate mold inside your home’s walls or under the floors.
