Hurricane and wildfire season insurance checklist

By the time a storm is named or a fire is burning in the next county, several insurance options have closed. A new flood policy takes about a month to start, insurers may stop accepting new business, and photographs taken afterward prove less than ones taken before. The checklist sorts the work into what to do before the season, what to do as a storm or fire approaches, and what to do after.

How to use it

Choose your main hazard: hurricanes and tropical storms, wildfire, or both. The list shows 17 items for one hazard and 22 for both, in groups: before the season, a hazard group for hurricanes, wildfire or each, and after the event. Tick items as you finish them. A count and a bar for each group track progress. "Save my progress on this device" keeps your ticks in this browser only, separately for each hazard choice, and "Clear" and "Print" do what they say. Do the first group while the weather is calm.

What it checks

Before the season covers reading your declarations page for the dwelling limit, your deductibles in dollars and loss of use; confirming flood insurance; updating a home inventory and storing it in the cloud; photographing every room and the outside; saving your policy and claims numbers in your phone; and putting policies, IDs and deeds in a waterproof folder you can carry.

The hurricane group adds checking shutters, impact windows and garage door bracing, clearing gutters and securing loose outdoor items, moving valuables and papers above flood level, taking date-stamped photos as the storm nears, and knowing that insurers may stop writing new policies or changes once a storm is named or a watch is issued.

The wildfire group adds clearing dead vegetation and debris within five feet of the house, cleaning roofs and gutters, covering vents with fine metal mesh, planning evacuation with a grab-and-go bag, and asking about mitigation discounts.

After the event, it asks you to return only when officials say it is safe, photograph before cleanup, make temporary repairs and keep receipts, report promptly (to your flood insurer too, if water rose), keep evacuation receipts, and be wary of contractors who solicit door to door.

What it assumes

The list contains no dollar figures. Its one timing rule is that a new flood policy usually takes 30 days to start, which follows 44 CFR 61.11(d); the exceptions include coverage tied to a loan closing (the 30-day flood insurance waiting period). The reason to know your deductible in dollars is that percentage deductibles are applied to the dwelling limit. Triple-I says they typically run from 1% to 5% of insured value, so 2% on a hypothetical $400,000 dwelling limit is $8,000 before wind coverage pays anything. The five-foot and mesh items are common hardening advice; your fire agency or state program sets exact distances and specifications.

Where it stops being right

The checklist is generic. It does not know your state, your insurer or your policy, and it leaves out earthquake, tornado, hail and winter storms. Insurer rules on when new business is restricted vary, and states can limit cancellations and nonrenewals after a disaster (disaster moratoriums on cancellations and nonrenewals); ask your agent what applies and when. It is also not an evacuation plan, so follow local officials. It checks your habits, not your coverage, so pair it with the homeowners coverage gap checker.

To turn the deductible line into a number, use the hurricane and percentage deductible calculator; for the flood line, the flood insurance coverage gap calculator. For detail, read hurricane season insurance checklist, home hardening for wildfire and insurance discounts and defensible space and wildfire insurance. If the worst happens, filing a homeowners claim after a hurricane and the home insurance claim checklist pick up where this list ends.