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Does my business insurance cover flood damage in Florida?

Use the free tool — Hurricane Biz Plan

Short answer: probably not, but ask

Flood is usually not part of a standard business insurance policy in Florida. It is usually a separate policy, and it comes with a 30-day wait before it takes effect. That's true of the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program. We don't know what your policy says — you have to ask.

Ask your agent these three questions, in writing

Email your insurance agent today. Ask:

• What is my wind deductible amount?
• Is flood covered? It is usually a separate policy — through the NFIP or a private insurer.
• Do I have business interruption or civil authority coverage, and what triggers it?

Get the answers in writing. Keep that email where you can find it after a storm.

The 30-day wait matters

If you don't have flood coverage yet, buying it the week a storm forms in the Gulf is usually too late. The NFIP has a 30-day wait before a new policy takes effect. Check floodsmart.gov now, not during a watch.

If water gets in and you have no flood policy

Two programs may help after a disaster is declared — neither is guaranteed, and neither will tell you a dollar amount in advance:

• SBA disaster loans — low-interest loans for physical damage and economic injury, after a declared disaster.
• Florida's Emergency Bridge Loan — a short-term state loan for small businesses, activated after a state of emergency.

Confirm with each agency whether your storm qualifies. We don't know in advance.

Photograph everything now

Whatever your policy covers, you'll need proof of what you had. Photograph: the exterior on all sides, the roof if you can see it, every room, equipment serial plates, inventory shelves, vehicles with the odometer showing, the inside of coolers, your lease, your policies, your licenses, and your last three months of sales and payroll. Save copies in the cloud and on a phone that leaves with you.

What to do next

This page is general. It is not insurance, legal, tax, or emergency-management advice, and it can be wrong — confirm your coverage with your agent, in writing, before you rely on anything here. The free tool reads what you tell it about your own business and turns it into a one-page plan: a timeline, a call list, this same photo list, and the programs to register with — in English or Spanish. Nothing you type is stored.

Hurricane Biz Plan generates a general continuity plan in plain language; it can be wrong, and it is not insurance, legal, tax or emergency-management advice. Evacuation orders from your county always come first. Confirm coverage with your insurance agent and program details with the SBA, FEMA and FloridaCommerce. Nothing you paste is stored.