Hurricane insurance claim checklist: wind, water and deductibles

The official Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30 (NOAA National Hurricane Center). When a storm hits, the claim that follows is often more complex than a single event suggests: wind, rain, rising water and storm surge can all damage the same home, and they are not always insured under the same policy. This checklist focuses on what to document and where to look.

Wind and water are often separate

Standard homeowners policies generally exclude flood, including storm surge, whether or not driven by wind (ISO HO-3 form; Insurance Information Institute). Flood damage is usually insured under a separate flood policy, such as the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). In the standard ISO HO-3 form, the windstorm or hail peril for personal property does not include damage to belongings inside the building caused by rain unless the direct force of wind or hail first creates an opening in a roof or wall. On the Texas coast, homeowners policies may not cover wind and hail at all; the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) sells windstorm coverage in its area.

You do not decide the cause or the coverage: your policies and insurers do. What helps is a clear record of what you observed in each area.

Area	What to record
Roof and exterior	Missing shingles, openings, fallen trees, photos from the ground
Each room	What you saw, where water came in, ceiling stains
Water line	Height on the wall, measured and photographed
Temporary repairs	What, when, by whom, cost and receipt
Claim reported under	Homeowners or windstorm policy, flood policy, or both

The first days

• Follow local authorities before returning.
• Report the damage to your insurer as soon as you can and note the claim number.
• Make temporary repairs to prevent more damage and keep all receipts (Insurance Information Institute).
• Photograph every area before cleanup.
• If you have flood insurance and water entered from outside, also give notice to your flood insurer. Each insurer decides which damage falls under its policy.

Hurricane deductibles

Many coastal policies have a separate hurricane or windstorm deductible set as a percentage of the home's insured value, commonly 1% to 5% (Insurance Information Institute). For example, a 5% deductible on a home insured for $300,000 means the first $15,000 of a hurricane claim is paid by the policyholder. Whether it applies depends on the trigger in your state and policy, such as a named storm or a hurricane watch or warning. Your declarations page shows the amount.

In Florida, insurers must offer hurricane deductible options of $500, 2%, 5% and 10% of the dwelling limit, with some exceptions. The hurricane deductible applies on an annual basis to all covered hurricane losses in the same calendar year under policies from the same insurer or insurer group; for a later hurricane, the insurer may apply the greater of the remaining hurricane deductible or the other-perils deductible (Fla. Stat. 627.701).

Florida claim notice deadlines

In Florida, a new or reopened property claim is barred unless notice is given within 1 year after the date of loss, and supplemental claims within 18 months; for a hurricane, the date of loss is the date of landfall, and for a tornado, windstorm or other weather event, the date NOAA verifies the event (Fla. Stat. 627.70132). Florida insurers must acknowledge claim communications within 7 calendar days and pay or deny within 60 days after notice of the claim, unless factors beyond their control prevent it (Fla. Stat. 627.70131). TWIA claims in Texas must be filed within one year of the storm (Texas Department of Insurance) and follow their own deadlines in the Texas Insurance Code (section 2210.573).

Food spoilage and power outages

Under a standard HO-3, an off-premises power outage alone is generally excluded. Food spoilage coverage depends on your policy and on what caused the outage; some insurers sell an add-on (Insurance Information Institute). Photograph spoiled food before discarding it and list it in your inventory.

Living elsewhere

If your home cannot be lived in, living expense coverage generally pays the increase in your costs over normal. Track receipts daily and ask your insurer in writing about limits and the end date.

The scale of hurricane claims

Hurricane Milton generated 385,146 insurance claims in Florida, including 304,408 residential property claims, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (data as of December 9, 2025). Wind and hail cause about 2.8 homeowners claims per 100 insured homes per year, with an average claim of about $14,700 (ISO data via Triple-I, 2019 to 2023).

Putting it together

The Hurricane and Wind Damage Claim Kit turns these steps into ready-to-use files, with nothing pre-filled that should come from your records, your policy or your insurer:

• US_Hurricane_Wind_User_Guide.docx: step-by-step user guide with key terms, rules that may apply, sources and a final checklist.
• US_Hurricane_Wind_Contents_Inventory_TRACKER.xlsx: room-by-room contents inventory with RCV, depreciation and ACV calculated, summary by room and category.
• US_Hurricane_Wind_Damage_Areas_Log_TRACKER.xlsx: area-by-area storm damage record: what you observed, photos, temporary repairs, which claim.
• US_Hurricane_Wind_ALE_TRACKER.xlsx: additional living expenses tracker: receipts, extra cost, reimbursed, not yet reimbursed, monthly summary, mileage.
• US_Hurricane_Wind_Claim_Diary_TRACKER.xlsx: claim diary: key dates with alerts, contact log, documents sent, payments received.
• US_Hurricane_Wind_Claim_Letters_TEMPLATE.docx: editable letters to request documents, information or time, to send documents, and to confirm conversations in writing.

Walk the property with the Damage Areas Log, list damaged belongings in the inventory, log temporary repairs and living costs, and keep each claim's numbers and deadlines in the Claim Diary. The guide explains hurricane deductibles and Florida claim notice deadlines with their sources.

General information, not legal or insurance advice. Your policies decide what is covered.