ST. PETERSBURG, FL & CHICAGO, IL – January 21, 2020 – Kin, the insurance technology company reinventing home insurance for catastrophe-prone areas, today announced it now offers flood coverage for Florida homeowners. The flood coverage is an insurance endorsement and can be tailored to Florida homeowners in areas deemed low-risk, moderate-risk, or high-risk for floods. The product is available now through Kin’s Florida home insurance carrier, the Kin Interinsurance Network, which launched last August.
"Flood coverage provides critical protection, and every Florida homeowner should consider purchasing it, especially since the majority of Florida’s homeowners do not currently have flood coverage," said Angel Conlin, Kin’s St. Petersburg-based chief legal officer. "In general, many U.S. homeowners mistakenly assume that flood coverage is provided in standard homeowners policies when it is not."
Most standard homeowners insurance policies don’t cover flood damage from storm surges. While damage from a burst water pipe may be covered, the damage from floods that accompany hurricanes isn’t. That’s why flood insurance is typically sold as a separate policy if it’s offered by private insurers at all.
"Because Kin’s flood coverage can be added to the homeowners insurance policy, Kin’s Florida customers only need to pay one premium for both home and flood coverage. This eliminates the extra time and cost of having separate policies and working with separate insurance companies," said Sean Harper, Kin’s CEO and co-founder. "We understand these challenges and want to make getting flood coverage as easy as possible for homeowners."
Although Florida’s coastal counties are prone to flooding, less than half (42%) of coastal county homeowners have flood insurance. The Insurance Information Institute notes approximately "98% of the total population of Florida lives in one of the coastal counties," which indicates a significant portion of Florida homeowners do not have flood coverage.
However, flooding isn’t limited to coastal counties. In fact, FEMA reports that as of 2018, 98% of U.S. counties have flooded. The Insurance Information Institute also reports that 90% of U.S. natural disasters involve flooding.
"Kin remains committed to building better home insurance that fits Florida homeowners' budgets. Coastal homeowners, including those living in flood zones, deserve affordable and reliable coverage that doesn’t compromise protection," added Harper.
About Kin
Kin Insurance is an insurtech startup and licensed Florida insurance carrier that is fixing home insurance through intuitive tech, affordable pricing, and world-class customer service. By leveraging thousands of publicly available data points, Kin can recommend the appropriate coverage at affordable prices for homeowners. Launched by seasoned financial tech entrepreneurs Sean Harper and Lucas Ward in 2016, Kin is the first insurtech company to serve catastrophe-prone regions and is committed to helping coastal homeowners most impacted by climate change. The company is headquartered in Chicago with an office in Tampa Bay, and is currently hiring in both offices. For more information, visit www.kin.com or www.kin.com/flood-insurance.
