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Windstorm Insurance

Homeowners insurance does not cover wind related damages. Before you buy check to see how you will insure the property and how much it will cost. Most insurance carriers have dropped windstorm insurance coverage after 2005. If you live in one of the 14 first-tier coastal counties in Texas your lender may not loan you money as they (nor you) are not protected from wind related insurance claims. These 14 coastal counties are designated as a high wind catastrophie area .

The windstorm construction program started in the mid-1980's in Texas through the Texas Dept. of Insurance. The windstorm certification process starts before the foundation is poured and onward through construction.

Contact the Texas Dept. of Insurance Windstorm Division for more information at 1-800-248-6032 and the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association at (512) 899-4900.

Before you buy do your required due diligence and see if the property is insurable.

A property must be intitally designed, inspected through construction and then certified by a windstorm engineer that the builder followed his design before he will certify it. There is no magic wand if this did not happen. You will not get a windstorm certification.

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Approval Process for Properties Without a Windstorm Certificate (Subject to Change).......Download 

As a result of Katrina and Rita, Harris County is was also deemed a high wind area by insurers with many of  them dropping windstorm insurance coverage from homeowner policies.

For more information about obtaining or maintaining windstorm insurance coverage when you build, remodel, add-on, repair or re-roof a structure, the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) encourages you to contact your insurance agent or the Windstorm Inspection Division of TDI.

Areas Affected
The information contained on the Windstorm Inspection Program's webpage is applicable only to structures located in the following 14 First Tier Counties along the Texas Gulf Coast as indicated in section 3(k)(1) of Article 21.49 of the Insurance Code: Aransas, Brazoria, Calhoun, Cameron, Chambers, Galveston, Jefferson, Kenedy, Kleberg, Matagorda, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Willacy or in one of the cities east of State Highway 146 in Harris County (La Porte, Morgan's Point, Pasadena, Seabrook, Shoreacres) if the property owners are seeking wind and hail coverage through the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association.

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FEMA Maps of Your Property
(Subject to change as new maps drawn after Tropical Storm Allison

Flood Smart - What's Your Flood Risk of the Property?

Has the home previously flooded? Had damages? Had a fire?Water pipes break? Hail damage? How do you know if if it's not being disclosed? You can find out by having your insurance company look at the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE). This is part of your due diligence when looking at homes. Be smart. Do your homework.
 

More Coming..come back often
 

You certainly don't want to forget to find out about insurance availability if you plan to livein a hurricane zone. Increasingly due to insurance reforms and cancellations I receive numerous phone calls a month from homeowners that were just notified by their insurance carrier that they do not have a windstrom insurance certificate and are facing the loss of insurance. You see, homeowners insurance does not cover anything that is wind related (storms, hurricanes, Acts of God, etc.) so if you live in a designated catastrophie zone you need windstrom insurance as a separate policy. Windstorm insurance rates are typically higher than homeowners insurance rates so don't let this by you.

In one case it took the insurance carrier 5 years to figure out their was no windstorm policy. In other cases this may be found out weeks or months after closing. To put it simpley, if you do not have all the insurance necessary to protect the property and the loan from windstorm the lender can step in mandate action. Some state insurance laws allow issurers up to 60 days after issuing a policy to thrououghly review all the underwriting information, including CLUE reports,and cancel a policy if new informationcomes to light that makes the risk unacceptable to the insurer. A homeowner's policy must be in place at closing and since many homebuyers leave purchasing a homeowner's policy at the last minute, the insurer may not have checked all the underwriting material by the time closing takes place. This may leave issues that could arise after the home is closed and the buyer has moved in.

If the property was built in the era of 1988/1989 along the first tier coastal counties and east of Hwy 146 in Harris County then you should check to see if a windstorm insurance certificate is on file as gaian, homeowner's policies do not cover flood or claims caused by high wind, storms, hurricanes, etc.

This was harshly felt after hurricanes Katrina and Rits when insurance companies decided to drop windstrom insurance to avoid the monetary risks.

A windstrom insurance certificate search can be easily done by your insurer, real estate agent at time of listing or by others. This is recommended to be done prior to entering into a contract of sale. Some newer properties do not have windstorm certicates due to builder neglect which makes insurance more expensive and in some cases, doubtful. This may appear to have a substantial market value impact on the property. If a high wind loss occurs you are not covered by basic homeowner's insurance.

Older properties currently enrolled into the windstorm program without certificates may continue to obtain insurance but at a higher cost.

A windstorm insurance certificate means the property was designed, inspected and certified by an approved windstorm engineer hired by the builder (or owner) to meet the required windstorm construction codes with all the necessary straps, anchors, bolts, hold-downs and nailing. This includes a foundation, roof shigles and wall construction for the wind loads to be imposed.

All properties (regardless of age) in the Gulf Coast should be checked for windstorm insurance certificates or windstorm availability as they also apply to renovations, repairs, re-roofing, siding, door and window replacements, patio covers and additions to name a few. If it wasn't approved then it may be considered substandard construction. Checking for windstorm insurance certificates is also good disclosure information prior to purchase.