Owners of apartment complexes have a lot on their minds. They need to keep their apartments filled with tenants, manage the employees who maintain and clean the complex, and ensure that all of the bills get paid. The last thing that they need is to deal with additional bills from storm damage-related repairs. Thankfully, there are several solutions to the problem, and all of them involve insurance policies.
Standard Building Insurance
It’s important to have standard coverage on your apartment building. While the tenants will need to have renter’s insurance to pay for any damage or destruction of their personal belongings inside of the apartment, it’s the job of the landlord to have coverage on the common areas, like the lobby, hallways, and elevators, as well as on the building itself should something happen to the exterior.
The issue with these policies is that they don’t always cover everything that’s needed. For example, a flood caused by a broken pipe may be covered by the building insurance, but if that flood happens due to a large storm, you could end up paying quite a bit out of pocket for the repairs. This is why you need to have additional coverages, just in case.
Hurricane Coverage
If you live in an area of the country that’s prone to hurricanes, then you’ll have to make sure that you carry this special type of insurance on your apartment building. While a standard building policy might cover the damage from wind and storms, it more than likely won’t do so for hurricane damage, which tends to be much more extensive.
Thankfully, hurricane insurance is designed to kick in when your building gets hit by one of these heavy storms, and it will most likely pay to repair any damage to the windows or roof of your building, depending on which parts of it got hit the hardest by the storm. Without hurricane insurance, you could be stuck paying cash for these repairs.
Flood Insurance
Then there’s flood insurance. Since a standard insurance policy usually only covers flooding that’s caused by an indoor source, such as a burst pipe or very clogged central drain, you need to make sure that your building has flood insurance if you live in a flood prone area. There are FEMA maps that show exactly where the risks of flooding lie, and even if your apartment is in a low-risk zone, it’s always a good idea to purchase flood insurance. This is particularly true if you live in an area of the country where hurricanes often hit because what often doesn’t get damaged by their high winds gets damaged by the flooding. It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to flooding.
Have Questions? Contact Charlotte Insurance
Want to learn more about hurricane and flood insurance for apartment complexes? Contact Charlotte Insurance. Our agents can explore and explain all available options and put together the insurance coverage plan your business needs.