Water Damage & Flooded Basement Restoration Services

Wind Damage and Insurance

By the RestorationSOS Educational Staff

Any time there is damage to our home or business, we wonder about the effect it will have on our insurance. Hopefully, the damage covered and we can get it repaired without too much interruption to our normal lives and finances. In the case of wind damage, it is no different. How do we determine what is covered and what isn't?

Determining Your Coverage

So a tree falls on your home – are you covered? Usually both the damage to the property and the cost of the tree removal are covered by homeowners' insurance policies. Tree removal is covered, in most cases, up to $500. The exception here is if a tree falls in the yard, but does not damage the home. In that case, tree removal expense would be undertaken by the homeowner.

Insurance will also not replace any tree or other shrubbery damage or destroyed by wind. Trees that are damaged as a result of vandalism, theft, or fire, however, may be covered.

If your car is parked in the driveway and the wind blew a tree over on it, you may be covered. If you have the correct clause in your insurance, namely comprehensive, then you should be covered. This is what is needed for any type of loss that is not crash-related. Always make sure that you are properly insured for every contingency.

The most common type of wind damage to a property is roof damage. This is usually covered under homeowners' insurance, provided that the damage was not the result of any sort of neglect on the part of the homeowner to properly maintain the roof. If the roof was properly maintained and the wind was the sole culprit, then it will be covered, as well as any damage to the home's interior and possessions.

Fences are also commonly ruined by windstorms, but they are usually only covered if they are physically attached to the main structure. Many times additional coverage will be required in order to protect fences. Fences tend to be a gray area for insurance providers, namely because some are structures all their own, made of brick and cement, that are part of the main property. Coverage tends to be much more limited in the cases involving wood fences.

Review Your Policy

As with any case involving homeowners' insurance policies, most people don't realize what is actually covered until there is a disaster. Take the time now to meet with your insurance provider, go through your policy thoroughly, and make sure you know what is covered and what isn't. If you have to purchase additional coverage, do it at that time. Remember that some policies have a 30-day window before they become active, so prompt action on your part is required to make sure that your, business, home, and family are properly protected.

Recommended Reading
What Causes Wind Damage
How Wind Damages a Property