I'm not so sure this is as cut and dried as most think. NO flooding due to a levee break is a true flood IMHO. But what about buildings that aren't in a flood plain but were hit by the extraordinary storm surge? Isn't the surge a result of the high winds? I'm not picking sides, but I see the argument.
It's still flooding. Flooding is not covered in these policies, and they didn't want to pay extra for the flood coverage. If I go to a restaurant and pay for a sandwich, does that mean I'm entitled to a steak even so? That's what MS is asking for.
Ditto. What do you think of my post #48?
I'm with you, I don't have answers only questions. For the people well off of the coast who lost everything to storm surge/wind/whatever, was flood insurance even available to them? Does the gov. offer flood ins. to those outside of flood plains?
The water that poured through the levee breaches was driven into Lake Pontchartrain by the wind, too. The conventional wisdom is that "water that comes from the ground level up" is flood damage, no matter how it got there. Water that enters a structure from above, through wind-damaged walls or roof, is covered by the standard (non-flood) homeowners or commercial property policy.
You can bet that people who didn't have flood coverage have been busy inflicting post-Katrina roof damage before the adjusters view the property. Yu can also bet that the insurance companies will be scrutinizing those satellite and aerial photos, comparing them with damage claims subsequently reported.
If Allstate simply agreed to cover all water damage regardless of whether a flood policy was in place, lots of people will be suing for the return of flood policy premiums, and rightfully so.
Plus, if a home was severely damaged by the wind before the surge, does the insurance company refuse to pay anything, or will they determine how much the home was damaged before it was submerged? What do they do about a flooded home with the roof blown off? Or, how do they determine what their obligations are on buildings that were partially submerged, yet caught on fire? But if the fire was caused by floods, then what do they do? Lots of gray areas here for the lawyers to dance around in. I have mixed feelings for I trust neither insurance companies nor government.