The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) could be extended to 2016 if a bill makes its way through Congress. Recently advancing out of a subcommittee of the House of Representatives, the lengthy flood insurance extension could help lawmakers solve issues that have plagued the program for years.

Bill Applauded by Property-Casualty Industry

The H.R. 1309 bill, known as the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2011, was introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Judy Biggert (R-Ill.) after being drafted in early March.

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All insurance policies, irrespective of their nature, contain terms and conditions.  These are sometimes, perhaps unfairly, referred to as ‘the small print’ – with the implication being that the insurer is somehow trying to sneak something past you on your home insurance policy.

This is certainly a misperception.

In fact, these conditions exist to help clarify what cover the policy provides for your holiday home and therefore, they are intended to help you understand the nature of the insurance you are purchasing.

It is, therefore, imperative that you fully understand what these conditions mean – and any obligations you may have under the terms of your policy (such as keeping the property well maintained, notifying the insurer if you are undergoing any structural renovations or changing the usage). These co

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Today marks the beginning of Flood Safety Awareness Week (March 14-18) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are strongly encouraging U.S. residents to prepare for springtime flooding dangers. In the wake of the devastating Japan earthquake and subsequent tsunamis that destroyed much of Japan, it becomes even more important that preparations, including acquiring flood insurance, are strongly considered.

Floods Are the Nations Most Common and Expensive Natural Disaster

FEMA and NOAA are working hard this week to get the word out that preparing for floods is crucial in increasing safety during this time of the year.

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If you own a holiday apartment in Spain, France or Portugal that is on a complex, check your building insurance – it could be inadequate.

It is common practice that part of a holiday apartment owners community/maintenance fees goes towards the community buildings insurance. However, there is a common misconception from apartment owners that the community building insurance is sufficient to cover their apartment and that they only need additional contents insurance.

Inadequate holiday apartment insurance

The problem is that community building insurance in Spain typically only covers communal areas such as walkways, swimming pools and the basic rebuild of the building structure. U

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Ten large home insurance companies are offering discounts to homeowners who install monitored security systems, says a new survey released by Electronic Security Association. The survey revealed these companies are offering premium discounts of up to 20 percent for homes equipped with burglar alarms.

Discounts Could Pay Portion of Installation Costs

As noted in a press release by Dom DAscoli, president of the Electronic Security Association, the 10 largest insurance companies reviewed offer significant enough homeowners insurance premium discounts to save policyholders up to 20 percent on their coverage.

This, he says, can be substantial enough to pay a portion of the monitoring costs or installation of the system.

The survey did not list the specific companies offering discounts, but according to the company, most people insured with large organizationsand some insured with smaller companieshave access to security system discounts.

Burglar Alarms Reduce the Need to File Insurance Claims

A study released by Dr.

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When you take out insurance for holiday homes you are protecting against the unforeseen. Flooding, fire, theft – but what is the biggest threat to holiday homes? Escape of water (burst pipes).

Here are some recent figures from the ABI (Association of British Insurers).

Insurers paid out £1.4bn in ‘big freeze’ insurance claims in the UK between 24 November to 31 December 2010 – the coldest December on record!

During this period…

• £1.43bn – the total value of claims

• 467,000 – the number of claims that UK insurers dealt with

• £900m – the cost of property damage claims, 190,000 in total

• 103,000 – property damage claims were for burst pipe damage, at a cost of £680m. This figure was an in

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