What’s windstorm insurance?
A windstorm policy is specialized property insurance, also known as hurricane insurance. It helps cover your home, other structures and personal belongings if they're damaged by hurricanes, hail, tornadoes or other windstorm events.
Is it required?
If you're buying a home in a high-risk coastal area, your lender will most likely require you to have windstorm and homeowners insurance.
Most property policies don’t cover storm surge or flood damage, so your lender may also require you to have flood insurance.
Why get a policy through the USAA Insurance Agency?
We have long-standing alliances with other insurance providers, and we monitor these relationships to make sure they meet our standards.
We’ve worked closely with our alliances for over 15 years. You can get help from specially trained representatives who'll serve you at the level you expect.
How windstorm deductibles work
You'll usually have separate wind and hurricane deductibles on your windstorm policy. Hurricane deductibles can be more expensive, and you'll usually pay them to cover damage from a named storm.
The agency alliance in your state should have guidelines in place for when each deductible applies.
Need to start a claim? Call us at 800-531-USAA (8722).
Windstorm insurance FAQ
Most standard policies cover tornado damage, but it ultimately depends on where you live and the type of coverage you have.
The dwelling coverage on your homeowners insurance can help repair or rebuild your home if it's damaged by a tornado Read article about staying safe during a tornado.
Your personal property coverage can help pay to repair or replace your belongings that were inside your home.
Check with your insurance company to make sure your homeowners policy includes coverage for tornadoes and other types of windstorm damage.
Depending on where you live, your homeowners insurance may include coverage for hail damage to your roof Read article about coverage for hail damage to your roof. If you live near certain coastal areas, you'll likely need to purchase a separate windstorm policy.
Be sure to check with your insurance company to make sure your homeowners policy includes coverage for windstorm damage.
If you're purchasing a new home, your windstorm policy should be active on the day you buy coverage.
If you already own your home and still need to purchase or update your windstorm coverage, there's typically up to a 30-day waiting period before your policy goes into effect.
If a major storm is approaching, some companies may temporarily suspend new coverage or policy changes for most types of property insurance.
For example, some companies may wait until a hurricane is 24 to 48 hours from making landfall before suspending new coverage.
We encourage you to review your policy yearly to make sure your property has the right protection.