What is a deductible?
Your deductible is a part of your policy that can have a major impact on your claim experience. So, what is a deductible?
To put it simply, your deductible is the out of pocket expense that you’re responsible for before insurance will provide coverage. If you have a $1000 deductible, that means that you are responsible to pay for any damages that are less than $1000. If damage from a covered cause of loss exceeds $1000, then you would file a claim and the insurance company would pay the repair or replacement amount that is over $1000.
Where it can get particularly confusing in the Charleston area is that policies usually have two deductibles - your All Other Perils Deductible (typically a flat dollar amount like what is described above) and a percentage deductible. Typically, policies in our area have a wind/hail, named storm, or hurricane deductible that is 2% or more. That 2% is calculated as a percentage of the Dwelling Coverage, not the loss amount. So, if you have a $500,000 Dwelling Coverage limit, a 2% deductible is actually $10,000 out of pocket.
Depending on your carrier’s deductible structure, you could be responsible for that 2% in the event of a hurricane, tropical storm, or wind/hail claim.
Hurricane Deductible - hurricane deductibles are ONLY applicable to damage caused by hurricane. Damage caused by a tropical storm or other non-hurricane wind/hail would be subject to your All Other Perils (AOP) Deductible.
Named Storm Deductible - named storm deductibles apply to damage caused by hurricanes AND tropical storms. Other non-named storm wind/hail is still subject to your AOP Deductible.
Wind/Hail Deductible - this type of deductible is applicable to any sort of wind/hail damage, regardless of it is caused by hurricane, tropical storm, tornado, or any other wind/hail event.
Overall, a hurricane deductible is the most advantageous deductible available in the market as it limits your higher out of pocket expense to one, very specific type of event.
To have me review your policy and help navigate your deductible options reach out here!