News

Actions

On Your Side: Exploring flood insurance options

Posted at 5:48 PM, Mar 09, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-10 11:19:11-05

People who live in Garden City, Eagle and Boise might want to check their status within the flood plain.

Flood insurance policy rates are determined based on location and the size of your home or business.

Most agents offer both Federal Emergency Management Agency-backed and private carrier options. With this type of insurance, there is always a waiting period. It's 30 days for FEMA policies. The only exception is for anyone who just purchased a home.

One local, FEMA-endorsed agent is seeing the annual fee as low as $350 up to $10,000.

"There's more than just FEMA available, FEMA underwritten policies," says David Martin with the Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company of Idaho in Eagle. "There's also private flood carriers that actually have a shorter waiting period of just 15 days."

Homeowners in high risk areas might also want to consider purchasing excess flood insurance. Martins says that goes for those who have property values over $250,000.

Martin also points out that unlike other types of insurance coverage, you do not get reimbursed if you cancel your coverage midway through the year.