March 2010 will be remembered for record rainfall. Insurance companies recorded two catastrophe dates due to claims from the heavy rain. If you suffered a loss you may be asking "How do you get these water claims covered"?

Let's start with the bad news. If your building just leaks due to poor construction, poor maintenance, an un-repaired roof, or seepage you will have very little opportunity to collect against the master policy. All master policies have wording that will exclude interior damage unless the exterior sustains a covered claim. Unfortunately, seepage and faulty construction are not covered claims.

When water enters below ground-level the claims are interpreted differently. Sewer backup, flood, and broad form water damage are examples of below ground-level water coverage.  Not all insurance companies offer these additional "water perils", and the amounts available also may vary. To confuse the issue even further, master policies that offer flood insurance often have zone restrictions and high deductibles.  If, for instance, you are in a flood zone A, you may find your flood coverage will not pay the claim because your are in the "A zone" or 100 year flood. You may also find that the master policy flood has a minimum deductible of $25,000 which is much higher than the damage you sustained.

Purchasing flood insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program is always an option. Here are just as few comments about National Flood:

You may find that the HO6, unit-owner policy, will cover claims that are denied by the master policy. Unit owner policies also have lower deductibles. If the unit-owner purchased the all-risk homeowner endorsement (HO1742) it may cover interior damage even if it was caused by seepage. Unit-owners can also purchase loss assessment (HO435). If your master policy claim is uncovered and the repair cost is assessed it may be reimbursed by the loss assessment endorsement.