Can you get sinkhole insurance in florida

To learn of sinkhole activity in your area, check with your county property appraiser or inquire about the availability of a statewide sinkhole database.

Sinkhole coverage presents unique challenges when it comes to insurance coverage. When homeowners insurance policies are priced, the real estate value of the land is excluded—that is, the property is insured for what it would cost to rebuild the home's structure, without respect to the price of the land. Therefore, most property insurance policies in the U.

Sinkholes, unlike earthquakes, are hard to predict, and difficult to investigate. They are also extremely costly to repair. Although the U. However, the Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance compiled extensive reports about the number of sinkhole-related insurance claims in Florida from to and the numbers were quite staggering.

It found that 24, sinkhole-related claims were reported during the five-year span , which comes out to nearly We do not offer financial advice, advisory or brokerage services, nor do we recommend or advise individuals or to buy or sell particular stocks or securities.

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Here is a list of our partners who offer products that we have affiliate links for. Are you sure you want to rest your choices? This law will especially impact residents of two particular counties, Pasco and Hernando, because private insurers are no longer required to automatically include sinkhole coverage in homeowner policies. Instead, the policies may protect for more limited circumstances, like those of catastrophic ground cover collapse damage.

Sinkhole insurance policies now come with hefty additional fees. Who is responsible for the repairs caused by sinkholes, which are naturally occurring land-surface depressions typically found in limestone-rich areas? These and other questions may help resolve the debate among many Floridians about whether to drop, add or renew comprehensive sinkhole insurance.

Some private insurance companies may insist that you purchase sinkhole insurance. Even though it increases the cost of a policy, it does also raise the risk factor for the insurance carrier. Because of the increased risk, many insurers who operate in Florida do not mandate sinkhole insurance nor do they cover sinkhole damage.

Insurance companies may cancel a sinkhole policy at any time. For residents of Pasco and Hernando counties, automatic drop notices have already been given because of the new law and a jump in sinkhole claims and costly payouts.