Your house has never flooded. You have a homeowner's insurance policy. You're thinking: 'I'm covered.'
Maybe not. Many Texas residents may believe they don't need to buy flood insurance. They don't live in a high-risk flood zone. But flooding can happen anywhere, often to the surprise of residents who thought they were covered for disaster. When flooding happens, the damage is not covered by most homeowners' insurance policies. One inch of floodwater can cause more than $25,000 of damage in a home.
Before a community is eligible for federal disaster assistance, it must be designated a federal disaster area. This happens in less than 50 percent of flooding incidents. The main form of federal assistance after a federally declared disaster is a loan that must be repaid with interest.
