Do You Need Flood Insurance? What to Know Ahead of Peak Hurricane Season.

Flood insurance may not be top of mind for many this year because hurricane activity in the Atlantic has been unusually quiet. But the traditional peak of the season is arriving, and storms that inundated the Midwest this month are a reminder that inland areas are vulnerable, too.

“Just because you don’t live on the ocean or on the banks of a river doesn’t mean you don’t need flood insurance,” said Amy Bach, executive director at United Policyholders, a consumer advocacy group focused on insurance.

Parts of the Midwest, including Indiana and Ohio, suffered downpours in August that swamped neighborhoods and left seven people dead in Indiana. Most people in that state did not have flood insurance. An analysis of federal data by Neptune Flood, a provider of private flood insurance, found that fewer than 0.48 percent of Indiana homes, or one in about 200, were protected by a flood policy.

Here’s what to know about flood insurance.

Why do I need special flood coverage when I have a homeowners policy?

Standard homeowners insurance policies in the United States do not cover damage from flooding. Separate flood coverage can be purchased from the federal government’s National Flood Insurance Program, managed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or from private companies. Coverage is mandatory for homes in high-risk areas bought with federally backed mortgages, but it is optional otherwise, so people often skip it.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/21/your-money/flood-insurance-hurricane-season.html