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Water, Water Everywhere
Are Flood Zones Reliable? And Are You Covered?
By Peter Normand
According to a 2020 report from the First Year Foundation, there were 336,000 properties in Massachusetts alone that were at some level of risk for flooding. This number is 65% higher than the existing flood maps indicate.
The heavy rains of last summer and the claims
cause of loss. Nearly all of my commercial insur- ance clients who have flood insurance have pur- chased it to satisfy a loan requirement. Nearly everyone else is rolling the dice — most stating that, since they aren’t in a flood zone, it’s not an issue. After a very wet summer of 2021, however, the conversation is changing, even if this sum-
the flooding that damages your property does matter.
On the market side, there are more options than ever, with more carriers offering a flood product. This leads to more flexibility for our insureds. For example, some markets allow for multiple properties on a single policy, some carriers offer limits in excess of NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) limits to adequate-
ly insure the value of the property, there are replacement cost (RC) and actual cash value (ACV) valuations, and more competition has cre- ated market pressure on premiums, especially for properties outside of flood zones.
With changing weather patterns and other unknowns, it’s reassuring to know that there are options. If you haven’t considered flood insur- ance in the past, or have been putting it off, now is the time to talk to you insurance agent. There is an expanding market with options to meet your specific exposures and needs. u
Peter Normand is a Commercial Lines account executive and RiSC consultant with Webber & Grinnell Insurance.
“Just because there is water in your basement doesn’t mean it’s a flood. In fact, water seeping into a foundation without the above definition being met would not be covered by flood insurance.”
   that followed got me wondering what the future holds. We are beginning to feel the impacts of cli- mate change in more severe and less predictable weather. How valid are our flood maps? What can property owners do to protect their property in an uncertain future? If you haven’t talked about flood insurance with your insurance agent yet, now is the time.
Banks require flood insurance on all proper- ties that are located in a flood zone per existing flood maps. Why do they do this? Commercial and homeowners policies exclude flood as a
mer has been drier.
Let’s start off by defining what a flood is.
Floodsmart.gov notes that “flood insurance cov- ers losses directly caused by flooding. In simple terms, a flood is an excess of water on land that is normally dry, affecting two or more acres of land or two or more properties.” Just because there is water in your basement doesn’t mean it’s a flood. In fact, water seeping into a foundation without the above definition being met would not be covered by flood insurance. When determining whether or not there is coverage, the cause of
  Teen
Continued from page 32 driver of the family vehi-
cle that is the least expensive.
• Are you adding a vehicle to your household for
your teen to drive? Look for a car with safety ele- ments, such as anti-lock brakes, airbags, and anti- theft devices, as insurers will often reward you for having these features with lower car-insurance rates.
• Monitoring your teen driver with today’s technol- ogy can not only help you keep an eye on your teen when they are on the road, but also earn you dis- counts on your car-insurance premium. Some insur- ers are now offering devices to parents that can be installed under a car’s dashboard and create a report card of your teen’s driving behavior. Information may include the number of miles the car covers, how fast your teen is driving, the hours the car is on the road, and how often your teen slams the brakes. Insurers with this program are providing discounts ranging from 15% to 30% to drivers who achieve predeter- mined safe-driving benchmarks.
• Raising your deductibles lowers your premiums. However, this is only a smart choice if you are com- fortable knowing that you might end up having to pay a larger share of costs for an accident out of your own pocket.
What Are the Options?
The team at HUB International has helped thou- sands of families across New England adapt to hav- ing a teen driver in their home. We know that your child’s newfound independence is exciting but may also cause you some stress and anxiety. But we can
help make sure you and your teenager are insured properly.
While there is a natural desire to look for ways to cut costs on your insurance as your teen becomes a full-time driver — and drives up the cost of your pre- mium — it’s definitely not the time to decrease your
“
your teen and all other drivers in your home dangerously underinsured and at financial risk should they be involved in an accident.”
In an effort to save money, you could leave
dent and is found at fault for bodily injuries to others or damage to other people’s property. For a minimal investment, this type of coverage may give you the peace of mind that your savings, investments, retire- ment accounts, and your family’s financial future are protected from an accident-related liability claim.
HUB, along with our partners, is committed to improving driver safe- ty. Nationwide, well over half of new
Finally, because teen drivers are, unfortunate-
ly, an accident-prone age group, once your child
gets behind the wheel, your liability risk inevitably increases. So it’s not a bad idea to consider adding an umbrella policy to your insurance solutions for those worst-case scenarios where your teen is in an acci-
    BusinessWest
INSURANCE
SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 33
coverage limits or eliminate optional coverages. In an effort to save money, you could leave your teen and all other drivers in your home dangerously underin- sured and at financial risk should they be involved in an accident.
Instead, it’s an excellent time to review your cur- rent auto policy with your insurance agent. We strongly recommend that our clients with teens carry more coverage than the state’s minimum required auto-insurance levels and that they opt for additional coverages such as collision and comprehensive. We also want to make sure that they are taking advan- tage of commonly overlooked car-insurance policy options that can save them money, stress, and time, like Bundle & Save, Disappearing Deductible, and Loan/Lease Gap Endorsement.
drivers crash in their first two years behind the wheel. Safety Insurance has partnered with the In Control Family Foundation to improve driver safety in Mas- sachusetts. The In Control program offers a half-day, hands-on driver skills-development program that teaches drivers to avoid the most common and seri- ous collisions. In Control’s crash-prevention training course has been shown to reduce crashes by new drivers by 70%.
With Safety Insurance, you can save 5% on your auto insurance by completing In Control’s crash-pre- vention training course, as well as saving more than 70% on the course itself.
Contact HUB for all of your insurance needs, and for additional information on programs such as In Control, call (833) 462-2554. u
 






















































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