Water damage is one of the most common causes of home insurance claims. For homeowners, unexpected water damage can be inconvenient and downright devastating. But knowing what to do immediately after your home experiences water damage can help you be better prepared. Read on to learn different types of water damage, what kind of water damage is covered under your insurance, and how to make a successful water damage insurance claim.

Florida homeowner prepares to file water damage claim.

The Cliff Notes: Key Takeaways From This Post

  • 1
    Water damage claims must meet requirements of standard home insurance policies, such as needing to be sudden or internal with no ground contact.
  • 2
    Homeowners should know three types of water damage commonly covered: sewer/water backup, overflow and discharge, and flood.
  • 3
    Gradual damage from things like seepage, lack of repair, and poor repairs typically won’t qualify for coverage.
  • 4
    Before filing a claim, homeowners need to document the damage with photos/videos and keep any damaged items as evidence.
  • 5
    Understanding your policy’s declarations page is essential prior to filing; you’ll receive Homeowner’s Bill of Rights brochure upon filing the claim in Florida.
  • 6
    An adjuster will inspect the property after the claim is filed; written estimates should be provided to the insurance company at each stage of the process.
  • 7
    If an insurance claim is approved, a settlement will be issued. If denied, a second opinion may help or an insurance dispute attorney can assist in recovering benefits entitled by law.

Why the Type of Water Damage Present will Impact Your Insurance Claim

Standard insurance policies require water damage to be a sudden or internal occurrence, with the requirement that the water has never touched the outside ground. For instance, an insurance policy may accept your claim for water damage if:

  • There is a discharge or overflow of water, even if it was an accident
  • Damage caused by the weight of ice, snow, or sleet.
  • Freezing of plumbing pipes
  • Tearing apart, cracking, burning, or bulging of steam

It’s important to note that some homeowners opt for a cheaper insurance policy such as an HO-1. In these type of policies, a homeowner may have limited coverage unlike other standard policies.

For better understanding, let’s take a look at 3 types of water damage in home insurance to help guide you as you’re making your insurance claim.

Sewer or Water Backup Coverage

A sewer backup happens when water comes up into your home. It can also be due to water being pushed into your home through the pipes from your sewer or drainage system. There are many things that can lead to a backup such as a tree root intrusion, blockage of city sanitary main, a city-related pipeline issue, or simply aging pipes.

Overflow Water Damage and Discharge Water Damage

Another type of water damage that’s usually covered under standard insurance policies is sudden and accidental discharge or overflow from plumbing fixtures or appliances. An overflow involves water escaping or overflowing from appliances, pipes, or water outlets inside the home.

Discharge, on the other hand, is when water is released from plumbing or appliances and then floods your home.

Flood Water Damage

A flood happens when a body of water is overflowing to the point where the level of water outside your home rises to the point it enters your home. If more than one area of your home is flooded, this is a good sign you have a flood claim. However, if your home is the only home affected, this decreases the likelihood of it being a flood claim.

What About Gradual Damage?

Your home is a complex structure. Therefore, you may not know exactly what’s going on behind the walls, but water damage can occur, even without an apparent situation. In fact, homeowners usually don’t know they have water damage until there is physical structural damage. With that said, if the damage is not sudden or accidental, and is instead a long-standing problem that was never addressed, this claim will likely get denied.

For instance, if you have plumbing, faucets, or pipes that leak over time and damage the walls as a result, this will likely be denied by the insurance company. Along with this, water damage caused by seepage from things like cracks in the foundation or at the exterior will not be a valid claim.

Other things such as mold, corrosion, deterioration of electrical wiring, poor repairs, or lack of home repairs will all likely be denied.

For homeowners who are preparing to file an insurance claim, it’s important to keep this in mind. Most insurance policies are very specific about what they will and will not accept as a valid water damage insurance claim. Knowing your policy, as well as, what kind of water damage your home has is the first step to filing a successful water da