Sump Pump To The Rescue

8/27/2019 (Permalink)

Sump Pumps Prevent Water Damage That Insurance May Not Cover

Sometimes, home insurance policies are hard to interpret. Unfortunately, many homeowners don’t truly understand what is covered until it is too late. If you can get a head start on prevention, especially the prevention of water damage, you won’t even need to call your insurance agent. If rain that damages your home has first touched the ground, your insurance coverage may be voided. Thus, both floods and ground seepage due to rain may not be covered by insurance. As if nature-inspired flooding weren’t bad enough, sometimes insurance won’t cover a backed up sewer line.

What DOES Insurance Cover If It Doesn’t Cover Groundwater?

What is covered? Insurance policies use the term “sudden and internal”. If your plumbing bursts, fails, or freezes and then damages your home, your insurance should cover the damage. If your toilet, washing machine, or bathtub overflows, your insurance will probably cover that also. And if your home experiences damage resulting from a leaking roof, your insurance will cover the damage – although insurance most likely will not cover the actual roof. While rain damage or snow damage is covered, flooding is not.

What Can A Homeowner Do To Compensate For Insurance?

What is a homeowner to do with these potential uninsurable threats to their home? Water damage is no joke. Is there a way to prevent water damage in the first place? Yes! Installing a sump pump in your basement or crawl space can prevent thousands of dollars of damage due to a flooded basement. Plus, a sump pump can help prevent mold and mildew from growing in your basement. 

How Does A Sump Pump Work?

A sump pump stands in the lowest part of your basement or crawlspace, in a gravel-base hole, also known as a sump pit. When the pit fills with water, the sump pump goes to work, moving water from the pit through pipes running out of your home to a location where the water can safely drain away from the foundation of your home. A check valve at the pump end prevents water from flowing back to the sump pit.

If your Norwalk home or business suffers water damage as a result of not having a sump pump, or your sump pump malfunctioning, call SERVPRO of Norwalk/Wilton.