When you live in Florida, hurricane watches and warnings are a part of life. Each year, business owners prepare for hurricane season. Hopefully, the steps they take now to prepare and protect their business property prevent or reduce the amount of hurricane damage.
Because the winds, floods, and storm surges caused by hurricanes can cause devastating damage to businesses, it is crucial that business owners purchase and maintain adequate insurance coverage for businesses. The information below from our Miami business attorney can help you begin your search for the right hurricane and flood insurance policy for your business.
Property Insurance Policies Are Not Storm Policies
A mistake made by many business owners is assuming their property insurance policy covers storm damages. In reality, most property insurance policies exclude damage caused by hurricanes, wind, floods, and other Acts of God. Therefore, you must carefully read the fine details of your insurance policy to determine whether your policy covers damages from hurricanes and floods.
Hurricane insurance is generally an add-on coverage that costs extra for coverage. The cost of a hurricane endorsement depends on several factors, including the location of your business, the value of your business, and the type of business you operate.
Does Hurricane Insurance Cover Flood Damage?
Another common misconception is that flood damage is also covered if a business is covered by hurricane insurance. However, flood insurance is a separate policy. Like hurricane insurance, flood insurance is an endorsement that can be added to your existing property insurance policy for an extra cost.
Floods are separate events from hurricanes. Therefore, you need a separate policy. The same may be true about damage caused by wind during a hurricane or storm. Wind damage may or may not be covered under a hurricane or flood insurance policy.
What Should a Business Owner Do to Protect Their Business from Natural Disasters?
The best way to protect your business during a natural disaster is to have insurance coverage. The more insurance coverage, the better. Types of business insurance coverage you may want to consider for your company during Florida’s hurricane season include, but might not be limited to:
- General property insurance covering physical loss and property damage
- Hurricane damage insurance
- Flood damage insurance
- Wind damage insurance
- Business interruption insurance
Depending on the type of business you operate, you could need additional insurance coverage to protect your company in the event of a hurricane, flood, or other natural disasters.
The best way to ensure you have sufficient insurance is to conduct a risk assessment. First, determine what resources you would need in the event of a disaster and then purchase insurance policies that provide coverage for those risks. Remember, read each policy carefully to ensure you know what is covered and not covered. After a disaster is not the time to discover your insurance policy does not provide coverage for the event or damage.
Contact Our Miami Business Attorney for More Information
Multiple insurance policies may cover damage to your business during a storm. Depending on the source of the damage, you could be entitled to compensation from several parties. Contact our Miami business attorney to discuss your legal options after your business sustains damage from any source.
