A client called my cell phone last weekend because they came back from vacation to find their basement flooded with a couple inches of water. During the downpour we had that Saturday, one of their gutters had overflown (due to not being cleaned recently) and the subsequent deluge filled 10 inches up in the egress windows. This leaked into their basement and soaked the carpet. They were able to dry the carpet using dehumidifiers and fans and that was the extent of the damage. The call to me was to see if replacing the carpet would be covered by their insurance. Unfortunately, rain water coming into your house from the outside is considered flood and therefore is not covered under most homeowners policies. Had this been a sudden pipe bursting within the house it would have been a different story. While frustrating, the client understood.
Tips:
- Clean gutters regularly to prevent water overflow that can leave standing water up against your home
- When leaving town, have a friend/neighbor check on your house (in its entirety) 1-2x per day. This person had a friend watching their home, but they did not go through the entire house; therefore they did not notice the flooding downstairs.
*Also make sure the person watching your home has the contact info for your agent and the claims department. Had this been a covered loss, the friend could have let us into the house to prevent further damage and start cleanup without interrupting the homeowners vacation.
