Whose home
An owner occupied, single family primary residence. The rule says the home "cannot be a condominium or mobile home."
Insurance on the Coast
Hurricane Deductibles and the Beach Plan
Near the Gulf, a homeowners policy often carries two deductibles, and the one for named storms is usually the larger. Many owners first meet it on the day after a hurricane, holding a repair estimate.
How the named storm deductible works in plain words, who the Beach Plan is for, and how a FORTIFIED roof can lower the wind part of your premium.
Storm damage right now?
If wind or rain has opened the house, call {{PHONE}}. A person answers at any hour.
Every season, homeowners in Gulf Shores, Fairhope and west Mobile open their declarations page and find a line they had forgotten: a deductible written as a percentage. After a storm that line decides how much of the repair is yours before the insurer pays anything.
This page explains that deductible the way the Alabama Department of Insurance describes it, then covers the two other things coastal owners ask about most: the Alabama Insurance Underwriting Association, known locally as the Beach Plan, and the state programs that reward a stronger roof. We are a restoration company, not an insurer or an agent, so treat this as a map and your own policy as the final word.
How a Named Storm Deductible Works
It is a second deductible, written into the same policy, that wakes up only for one kind of event.
The Department of Insurance puts it simply in its consumer guidance: "The insurer applies this deductible only when a named storm causes damage." It adds that this deductible "is separate and different from the normal deductible in a homeowners policy." So a pipe that bursts in February falls under your regular deductible. A roof torn open by a named hurricane in September falls under the named storm one.
The amount is usually set in one of two ways. The Department says a named storm deductible "is usually a percentage of the home’s value," and that it can "also be a fixed dollar amount." When it is a percentage, it is figured on the insured value of the home, not on the size of the repair. Your policy and declarations page show which figure it uses.
A worked example, in words only: if your policy carries a two percent named storm deductible, your share of a covered storm repair is two percent of the insured value.
There is one more question your policy answers, and the Department tells consumers to look for it: "Read your policy to find out whether the deductible is per event, per season or per calendar year." Under a per event wording, two storms in one summer can mean two deductibles. Only your policy says which.
When It Applies, and When It Does Not
The trigger is the cause of the damage, not the calendar.
The named storm deductible applies when a named storm causes the damage. A summer thunderstorm with straight line winds, a tornado on a spring afternoon, or a tree that falls on a calm day are normally handled under the regular deductible, because no named storm caused them. The definition is in your policy.
The deductible also says nothing about flood. Rising water from surge or a swollen creek is excluded from a standard homeowners policy and is covered, if at all, by a separate flood policy. Our page on flood zones and flood insurance explains how to look up your own address.
Know your number before hurricane season
Look your deductible up now, write it down, and keep it with your policy papers and photos of the house. After a storm, that number helps everyone plan the work honestly.
Find Your Deductible on the Declarations Page
Ten minutes with the declarations page now saves a hard conversation later.
- Find the declarations page, usually the first pages of the policy or the renewal packet
- Note the dwelling coverage limit, often listed as Coverage A
- Find the regular, all other perils deductible
- Find the named storm or hurricane deductible and whether it is a percentage or a fixed amount
- If it is a percentage, write down what that percentage of the insured value comes to
- Check whether it applies per event, per season or per calendar year
- See whether wind is covered by this policy at all, or by a separate Beach Plan policy
- Note any FORTIFIED or mitigation discount already applied
- Ask your agent about anything you cannot find, and save the answer
The Beach Plan
For many homes closest to the water, wind coverage comes from a state created pool instead of a regular insurer.
The Alabama Insurance Underwriting Association, which the Department of Insurance has long called the "Beach Pool," offers coverage for coastal property in Baldwin and Mobile counties. Its windstorm and hail policy covers wind and hail only, which is not a flood policy. Ask what else your home carries for other perils and for rising water.
The Department described the boundary when it announced the policy, in a release dated 2000: wind and hail coverage "for property located anywhere South of the 31st parallel in Baldwin and Mobile counties." Not every address south of it qualifies, though. The association’s own map tool says that properties in Coastal Barrier Resources Act zones are not eligible.
Eligibility depends on the exact parcel, so use the association’s own checker. For an address north of the line it replies that the property "is not within our area we provide coverage." Use the AIUA zone checker with your address.
FORTIFIED Roofs and Lower Wind Premiums
Alabama law ties a premium discount to a roof built or retrofitted to a recognized standard.
The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety publishes the FORTIFIED Home standard, a set of building methods meant to keep the roof on and the water out in high wind. The program offers three designations: FORTIFIED Roof, Silver and Gold.
Alabama writes the reward into the Code. Section 27-31D-2 says "insurance companies shall provide a premium discount or insurance rate reduction" for homes built or retrofitted to the IBHS FORTIFIED standards, and that the home qualifies "only after inspection and certification by an IBHS certified inspector." The same section says the adjustment "shall only apply to policies that provide wind coverage." In a dated consumer handout, the Department of Insurance put it more directly for this area: "These discounts are mandatory for property located in Baldwin and Mobile counties." Ask your agent what your designation earns.
Strengthen Alabama Homes
The state also runs a grant program, Strengthen Alabama Homes, that helps pay for a FORTIFIED retrofit. Its rules are in the Alabama Administrative Code, Rule 482-1-159, and they are specific:
Where
The owner must claim the home as a primary residence "in a county where grants are being approved."
What gets built
A retrofit to the IBHS FORTIFIED Roof or FORTIFIED Silver standard, done by an approved program contractor.
How grants go out
"Grants are awarded on a first-come basis subject to availability of funds." Wind coverage must be in force, and flood coverage too in a special flood hazard area.
Questions About Coastal Deductibles
My house in Daphne had roof damage from a summer storm. Does the hurricane deductible apply?
Only if a named storm caused the damage. A thunderstorm or a tornado without a named storm behind it is normally handled under your regular deductible. Your policy defines the terms, so ask your agent and keep the answer in writing.
I have a Beach Plan policy in Orange Beach. Am I covered for flood?
Not through a wind and hail policy. Rising water from surge or rain is covered, if at all, by a separate flood policy, so ask your agent whether you carry one.
We are putting a new roof on our home in Foley. Is it worth going FORTIFIED?
It may be. Alabama law requires a premium discount, applying to policies that provide wind coverage, for a certified FORTIFIED home, and Strengthen Alabama Homes grants help some owners pay for the retrofit. Check grant eligibility before the work starts. Our storm damage team can document the old roof damage for your adjuster first.
Sources for this page
- Alabama Department of Insurance, named storm deductible release, March 2021, separate deductible, percentage or fixed amount, per event or per season wording.
- Alabama Department of Insurance, Beach Pool windstorm and hail policy release, wind and hail only, south of the 31st parallel in Baldwin and Mobile counties.
- Alabama Insurance Underwriting Association, zone maps, the address checker and CBRA zone ineligibility.
- Code of Alabama, Section 27-31D-2, the FORTIFIED premium discount, certification and wind coverage wording.
- Alabama Department of Insurance, windstorm damage mitigation handout, discounts mandatory in Baldwin and Mobile counties.
- Alabama Administrative Code, Rule 482-1-159-.02, Strengthen Alabama Homes eligibility.
- IBHS FORTIFIED Home, the FORTIFIED Roof, Silver and Gold designations.
After the Storm, Before the Adjuster
A person answers 24 hours a day. We document every room for the adjuster so your claim starts with a clear record.