Understanding Wind vs. Flood
Damage Claims in Louisiana
Why It Matters After a Louisiana Hurricane
When a hurricane strikes Louisiana, the destruction rarely comes from a single source. Most storm damage involves both powerful winds and rising water, leaving homeowners facing a confusing situation: which insurance policy covers what? Understanding the difference between wind and flood damage directly affects whether your claim gets paid and how much compensation you receive.
Louisiana homeowners typically carry two separate insurance policies: a standard homeowner's policy that covers wind damage, and a separate flood insurance policy that covers water damage. After a major storm, determining which policy applies to specific damage can become complicated, especially when both wind and flood contributed to your losses. Insurance companies don't always make this distinction clear, and disputes over coverage can leave you fighting for every dollar while your damaged home sits in limbo.
Knowing your coverage before filing a claim protects your rights and helps you document damage properly from the start. At Binegar Christian, we've spent over 20 years helping Louisiana homeowners navigate these complex hurricane claims. Let’s explore the differences between wind and flood damage coverage so you understand what you're entitled to and can recognize when insurers aren't treating you fairly.
What’s Considered Wind Damage?
Wind damage refers to destruction caused directly by hurricane-force winds and is typically covered under your standard homeowner's insurance policy. This coverage protects the physical structure of your home and often includes damage to attached structures like garages and carports. Understanding your specific policy terms before a storm hits helps you know what to expect when filing a claim.
Common examples of wind damage from Louisiana hurricanes include:
Roof damage from high winds lifting or tearing off shingles, tiles, or metal roofing. Wind can compromise your roof deck, create leaks, and damage the underlying structure.
Broken windows and doors caused by wind pressure or debris carried by hurricane-force winds. When wind shatters your windows, the resulting interior water damage is typically covered as part of the wind claim.
Siding and exterior damage where wind tears off vinyl siding, damages brick veneer, or rips away exterior cladding. Wind can also damage fascia, soffits, and gutters.
Structural damage from falling trees or large debris. If hurricane winds knock a tree onto your home, the damage is usually covered under your homeowner's policy's wind coverage.
Damage from wind-driven rain such as when wind forces rain through damaged roofs, broken windows, or compromised exterior walls, the resulting interior damage (ruined drywall, flooring, furniture) is typically covered under wind damage provisions. This is because the wind created the opening that allowed water inside.
Detached structures like sheds, fences, and detached garages damaged by wind are also typically covered under your homeowner's policy, though coverage limits may differ from your main dwelling coverage.
What’s Considered Flood Damage?
Flood damage refers to destruction caused by rising water and is covered under a separate flood insurance policy, not your standard homeowner's insurance. This distinction is crucial because homeowner's policies specifically exclude flood damage, leaving homeowners without flood insurance facing catastrophic out-of-pocket costs.
Flood damage includes:
Rising water from storm surge during hurricanes.
Overflow from rivers, bayous, and other bodies of water.
Levee failures and overtopping.
Ground saturation and runoff.
Storm drain and sewer backups caused by flooding may be covered under flood insurance, depending on the circumstances and your specific policy provisions.
Most flood insurance in Louisiana is provided through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a federal program administered by FEMA. Private flood insurance has become more available in recent years, offering an alternative with potentially different coverage terms and limits.
Flood insurance has strict claim requirements and deadlines. You must file a Proof of Loss form within 60 days of the flood event, a much shorter timeframe than homeowner's insurance typically requires. Missing this deadline can jeopardize your entire claim.
Flood insurance typically doesn't cover basements or finished below-grade spaces the same way it covers above-grade living areas. Coverage for items stored in basements is extremely limited.
How Insurers Distinguish Between Wind and Flood Damage
After a hurricane, insurance adjusters assess your property to determine what caused each type of damage. This assessment directly affects which policy pays your claim and how much you receive. The adjuster's job is determining whether damage resulted from wind, flood, or both, and insurance companies have strong financial incentives to attribute damage to whichever policy provides them the most favorable outcome.
The assessment process typically involves:
Physical inspection where adjusters examine damage patterns, water lines, debris, and structural impacts. They look at roof damage, interior water stains, flooring damage, and exterior impacts to form opinions about causation.
Review of storm data including wind speeds, rainfall amounts, storm surge predictions, and the timeline of the storm's impact on your area. This data helps establish when different types of damage likely occurred.
Documentation review of photos, videos, and written accounts you provide showing damage progression and conditions during and after the storm.
Application of policy language interpreting coverage provisions and exclusions to determine what the policy covers.
The challenge arises when both wind and flood damage occur simultaneously or in close succession. Many Louisiana hurricane claims involve exactly this scenario: wind damages your roof, then rain enters through that opening, while separately, storm surge floods your first floor. Determining which damage came from which source becomes critical because it dictates which insurance company pays.
Anti-concurrent causation clauses complicate matters further. Many homeowner's insurance policies include these provisions stating that if a covered peril (wind) and an excluded peril (flood) work together to cause damage, the entire loss is excluded. For example, if wind weakens your home's structure, then flood waters cause the home to collapse, the insurer might argue the flood contributed to the collapse and therefore deny the entire claim under the anti-concurrent causation clause.
Courts in Louisiana and other states have scrutinized these clauses, sometimes finding them ambiguous or unenforceable, but they remain common in policies and create disputes after major storms.
Common Disputes Homeowners Face
Louisiana homeowners frequently encounter specific problems when filing hurricane claims involving both wind and flood damage:
Denied claims due to unclear cause of loss: Insurers sometimes deny claims entirely, arguing they cannot determine whether wind or flood caused the damage, or claiming all damage was caused by the excluded peril (flood) rather than the covered peril (wind).
Insurers blaming flood instead of wind to limit payouts: Since flood insurance coverage limits are often lower than homeowner's policy limits, and since many homeowners lack flood insurance entirely, insurance companies have financial incentives to attribute as much damage as possible to flooding rather than wind. This allows them to pay less or deny claims completely.
Delayed claims processing: After major hurricanes, insurers may be overwhelmed with claims, but unreasonable delays leave homeowners unable to make repairs while their properties deteriorate further. Some delays are intentional tactics to pressure homeowners into accepting low settlement offers.
Lowball settlement offers: Initial offers from insurance companies often fall far short of actual repair costs. Adjusters may underestimate damage severity, use improper valuation methods, or simply offer less than the claim is worth hoping homeowners will accept without question.
Disputes over wind-driven rain: Insurers frequently argue that water damage inside homes came from flooding rather than wind-driven rain entering through wind-damaged openings. This distinction matters enormously because wind-driven rain falls under homeowner's coverage while flood damage does not.
Documentation challenges: Homeowners who evacuated before the storm may not have photos showing the progression of damage or the condition of their property before flooding occurred. Without this documentation, proving causation becomes more difficult.
When these disputes arise, documentation, expert reports, and legal support make all the difference.
How Our Louisiana Insurance Attorneys Can Help
At Binegar Christian, we've represented Louisiana homeowners in hurricane damage claims for over two decades. We've seen every tactic insurance companies use to minimize or deny legitimate claims, and we know how to fight back effectively. We handle both state and federal claim disputes, whether your dispute involves your homeowner's policy or your NFIP flood policy.
Our experience handling claims throughout Louisiana gives us deep knowledge of local storm patterns, construction methods, and how hurricanes typically damage Louisiana homes. This local expertise strengthens our arguments and helps us build compelling cases. We fight for full compensation because insurance policies should cover what they promise to cover. When insurers deny valid claims, delay unreasonably, or offer inadequate settlements, we take aggressive action to protect your rights. We're not afraid to file lawsuits and take cases to trial when necessary to achieve fair results.
If your hurricane claim was denied, your insurer blamed flood damage when you believe wind caused the loss, you received a settlement offer that doesn't cover your actual repair costs, or your claim has been unreasonably delayed, don't accept the insurance company's answer as final. You have rights, and we can help you enforce them. If your claim was denied or undervalued, contact Binegar Christian today. We can help you recover what you deserve.
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