Olive Cover now places National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) flood coverage for Georgia homes and businesses, written through Selective Insurance as a Write-Your-Own (WYO) carrier. Standard homeowners and commercial property policies exclude flood damage entirely, a gap many Georgia property owners discover only after a storm event causes a loss.
What does NFIP flood insurance cover?
NFIP flood policies cover two categories: building coverage and contents coverage. Building coverage, comparable to dwelling coverage in a standard homeowners policy, pays for structural damage to the home, including the foundation, electrical and plumbing systems, HVAC equipment, and built-in appliances. Contents coverage pays for personal belongings inside the home. For residential properties, NFIP limits are $250,000 for the building and $100,000 for contents. Commercial properties can carry up to $500,000 for each category. Property owners who need protection above those limits can layer private excess flood coverage on top of an NFIP base policy.
For example, a Buford homeowner near Lake Lanier with a home valued at $450,000 would reach the NFIP building limit at $250,000 and could use a private excess flood policy to cover the remaining $200,000 in structural value.
What does NFIP flood insurance not cover?
Basement contents are generally excluded, including personal property, furniture, and most fixtures stored below ground level. Vehicles are not covered; comprehensive auto coverage handles flood damage to cars and trucks. Landscaping, fencing, decking, and swimming pools are excluded. Temporary housing expenses after a displacement are not covered under a standard NFIP policy. The deductible applies separately to the building and contents portions of a claim, so a single flood event can trigger two separate deductible payments.
Who needs NFIP flood insurance in Georgia?
Homeowners and businesses in FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs), the high-risk flood zones shown as Zone AE or Zone A on FEMA’s Flood Insurance Rate Maps, are typically required to carry flood coverage when a federally backed mortgage is on the property. Lake Lanier communities in Gwinnett, Hall, and Forsyth counties carry flood exposure for properties near the shoreline or in low-lying areas. Many Georgia property owners in moderate-risk zones (Zone X) also carry voluntary flood coverage because standard homeowners policies provide no flood protection and NFIP is often the most accessible market for those properties.
For example, a Suwanee homeowner whose property sits in Zone X is not required to carry flood insurance under most mortgage terms, but a few inches of water from a backed-up stormwater system would not be covered by the standard homeowners policy, making a voluntary NFIP or private flood policy a reasonable question to raise with an agent during a coverage review.
How does NFIP coverage work alongside a homeowners policy?
NFIP flood coverage and a standard homeowners policy are separate contracts covering different perils. The homeowners policy handles fire, wind, hail, theft, and most water damage that enters through a breach in the building’s envelope, such as a roof damaged in a storm. The NFIP policy handles flooding: water that rises from the ground, overflows a body of water, or enters as storm surge. Knowing which policy covers which event matters when a claim is filed. A coverage review maps the specific perils at a given Georgia address to the right policy structure. For the full picture of how NFIP fits Georgia flood risk and where private flood may be a better option, see our flood insurance guide.