CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas —
For those of us who've lived in the Coastal Bend and weathered hurricanes in the past, we know what needs to be done to prepare.
Batteries, canned food, bottled water -- we know the drill. But what about the bigger things, such as insurance? No storms are currently approaching the Coastal Bend, but if one does, are you ready?
The Insurance Council of Texas' Rich Johnson said by the time a named storm enters the Gulf of Mexico, you may hit a wall when it comes to securing the right insurance plan for your home.
"When a storm is approaching, or if there is a hurricane in the area -- or even if there's a wildfire in the area -- companies usually do put a hold or a restriction on writing new policies," he said.
Johnson said some insurance companies may not even be able to make changes to a homeowner's current policy by the time a storm enters the Gulf of Mexico.
"And that's just to protect themselves," he said. "You just don't want people signing up for insurance, waiting for the disaster and then canceling it."
When it comes to hurricanes and major rain events, many people may also not realize that flood insurance is not typically covered by normal homeowners' insurance policies.
Farmers Insurance's Stephanie Waterman told 3NEWS a common misconception she hears about our area when it comes to flooding.
"There's a lot of people that say 'Oh, I don't live in a flood zone', but they live in Corpus Christi," she said. "All of Corpus Christi is a actually a flood zone. It's just whether a mortgage would require to buy a flood policy or not."
Most homeowners get flood insurance through FEMA's national flood insurance program. Waterman said it's always important to plan ahead, because from the date of purchase, that flood insurance plan won't go into effect for at least 30 days.
"I recommend that people buy flood insurance around May 1 if they're not purchasing the home," she said. "That will give them 30 days effective until the actual hurricane season starts on June 1. So that's a great time to get your flood insurance going and don't wait if you haven't done it."