Is storm damage covered by building insurance?
Building insurance is taken out to protect your home from imminent dangers. Your house can be seriously damaged by fire, storms or a burglary, for example. This is of course annoying enough. Should this happen, you want to be properly insured.
In the Netherlands we face extreme weather a few times a year. Within minutes, for example, storms can cause enormous damage. Fortunately, there is storm damage insurance that can cover the cost of this.
Storm damage insurance falls under homeowners insurance. What exactly is covered under storm damage and what is reimbursed?
Storm damage deductible
Storm damage is obviously annoying enough, and you would prefer that the damage caused by the storm be repaired as quickly as possible. With building insurance, you pay a deductible in the event of storm damage before you are compensated for the damage. Usually this amount is set at €150. You can increase or decrease the amount yourself. There is a higher deductible for storm damage than for most other damages. In general, you pay two thousandths of the amount for which you have insured your home as a deductible. This amount is usually between €200,- and €500,- but varies by insurer.
Excess for storm damage
If you have sustained storm damage, report it to the insurance company as soon as possible! They can discuss with you the best thing to do. You may need to make provisions to prevent further damage. Alternatively, the advice may be to do nothing and leave the damage for experts to assess the damage. It never hurts to take photos of the damage. You can use these photos as evidence.
When an expert is sent by the insurer, the insurer will pay the cost directly to the company in question.
However, as noted above, there is a deductible for storm damage that you must first pay yourself before you are reimbursed for the expenses incurred.
Storm damage prevention
(Storm damage) prevention is better than cure. If it is known in advance that a storm is coming, it is important to be prepared and check a few things before the storm hits.
- Close all doors and windows. To ensure that doors and windows are not easily carried away by the storm, it is important that you close them. This will also prevent precipitation from entering your home.
- Make sure all items in your yard or on your balcony are secured and cannot blow away. If necessary, put items inside your shed or garage. Also check that the fence is secure and cannot blow away.
- See if any roof tiles are crooked or loose. When roof tiles blow off your home, it creates a lot of danger. Not only in terms of damage to your home, but also to the people and belongings around your home. In addition, blown away roof tiles can cause leaks.
- Remove dead or loose branches from trees around your home. Not only does this reduce the weight of trees. Loose branches are also a major damage risk.
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