US weather patterns continue to be unpredictable and the Northeast is getting its first taste of snow, so I thought it would be good to reinforce how important it is to have a comprehensive storm response plan.

As the world is ever changing, so are the way insurers interpret the natural disasters and how they will respond to cover these terrible events. Over the years, the U.S. has seen an increase in earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, blizzards and more. The insurance industry now has created a stricter view of how they will cover these events. In particular, as we have seen with Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy, the insurance industry has developed a new terminology and deductible related, specifically, to “named storm/named windstorm.”

Real estate is one of the most important assets one can have regardless of owning personally or as a business entity. As they say, it’s all about location, location, location – so you better know exactly what risks you are going to be exposed to when looking to purchase new property or simply evaluating your current location(s). In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy the scrutiny of flood insurance policies is at an all-time high, particularly, in the northeast. When assessing the value of any new or current property and the insurance requirements and costs that come with it, understanding where it is in relation to local flood zones is critical.