Northern Michigan homeowners urged to document flood damage, file claims – 910News.com

TRAVERSE CITY — Some Northern Michigan homeowners are picking up the pieces and making insurance claims following last week’s devastating weather and flooding.

Home insurance experts are encouraging people to reach out to their policy providers as soon as possible and to document with pictures throughout the property.

Bryan Burley, president of Insurance by Burley, says that home insurance is limited and does not automatically cover flooding from an external source.

“Groundwater incursion is not covered on a standard homeowner’s policy — only a separate flood policy covers damage from water coming in from outside the house,” he said. “When people call and report water coming into the house from outside and don’t have flood insurance, we sometimes have to deliver disappointing news.”

Flood insurance can be purchased through the federal government or private providers. Any new plans won’t go into effect until 30 day after purchase.

Burley says that for those with policies, it’s up to homeowners themselves to ensure that the ball gets rolling on any claims or repairs that need to be done.

“It’s ultimately the policyholder’s responsibility to arrange for any work that needs to be done,” he said. “Insurance companies don’t do the work, or don’t even arrange to have it done. It’s up to you to and then you’ll be reimbursed by your policy.”

Mark McKellar is a homeowner in the Mayfield area who dealt with flooding on his property last week.

He had to evacuate due to flooding on the Boardman River, which reached record heights.

“The morning of the flood, the major flood — it was like a flash flood,” he said. “I woke up, something had hit the house. It wasn’t anything like a log or anything. It actually was a water surge, and it slammed the east side of my house.”

McKellar says that he is insured, both with home insurance and separate flood insurance.

He’s now encouraging others to be proactive in making sure their homes remain in good condition.

“I contacted my agent immediately and filed the claim,” he said. “Then from that point, the agent contacted my carrier, and they immediately contacted me by email, told me exactly what I needed to do — I did that.”

Those who didn’t have insurance don’t have official options for recourse. Community organizations and nonprofits may be able to help, and assistance could come from the state of federal governments — but none of that is guaranteed.

Burley also says the demand could contribute to higher insurance rates.

Insurance costs are based on the cost of labor, construction materials and the amount of claims being made by policyholders.

“We have seen rates increasing over the years, and I don’t expect that trend to reverse,” he said. “When there’s inflation in those numbers and claims get more expensive to resolve, then premiums have to go up to keep the risk pool healthy.”