Here's what most people don't realize about hurricane insurance until it's too late: there's no such thing as a single "hurricane insurance" policy. When a hurricane hits, your home faces multiple threats—wind tears off your roof, rain pours through the opening, and storm surge floods your first floor. Each type of damage might be covered by a different policy, with different deductibles, and some might not be covered at all.
As we head into 2026, the hurricane insurance landscape is shifting. The 2025 season was remarkably quiet—the first time in a decade without a U.S. hurricane landfall. That's given the insurance market some breathing room, and you might even see rate decreases in some hurricane-prone states. But don't let one calm year fool you. Climate change is making extreme rainfall events more frequent, and understanding exactly what you're covered for has never been more important.
Wind Coverage vs. Flood Coverage: The Critical Split
The most important thing to understand about hurricane damage is this: your standard homeowners insurance covers wind damage, but it does not cover flood damage. Ever. This isn't a loophole or fine print—it's a fundamental exclusion in virtually every homeowners policy.
Wind coverage includes damage from hurricane-force winds that rip off roof shingles, break windows, knock down trees onto your house, or send debris through your walls. If wind is the direct cause, your homeowners policy should cover it—subject to your deductible and coverage limits. But the moment water enters your home from the outside—whether it's storm surge, heavy rainfall, or rising floodwaters—you need a separate flood insurance policy.
This creates real problems during hurricanes because these storms bring both. Hurricane winds might tear a hole in your roof (covered), but then rain pours through that opening and destroys your ceiling and furniture (also covered, because wind created the opening). But if storm surge floods your first floor? That's not covered without flood insurance, even if hurricane winds are simultaneously tearing your roof apart.
You get flood coverage through a separate policy, either from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) or private insurers. Here's the catch: flood insurance typically has a 30-day waiting period before it takes effect. You can't buy it when you see a hurricane forming in the Atlantic and expect to be covered. You need to plan ahead.
Understanding Percentage Deductibles
If you're used to a $1,000 or $2,000 deductible on your auto insurance, hurricane deductibles are going to surprise you. In 19 states plus D.C.—basically anywhere hurricanes are a real threat—insurers use percentage deductibles for hurricane damage instead of flat dollar amounts.
Here's how it works: if you have a 2% hurricane deductible and your home is insured for $400,000, you're responsible for the first $8,000 of hurricane damage. With a 5% deductible on that same home, you'd pay $20,000 out of pocket before insurance kicks in. In Florida, insurers must offer options of $500, 2%, 5%, or 10% of your dwelling coverage. Most commonly, you'll see deductibles ranging from 1% to 5%.
But it gets more complicated. Many policies have separate wind/hail deductibles in addition to hurricane deductibles. These are especially common in states like Texas, Oklahoma, and other areas prone to severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. So you might have a standard $2,000 deductible for most claims, a separate 2% wind/hail deductible, and a 5% hurricane deductible—all on the same policy. Which one applies depends on what the National Weather Service calls the storm and what kind of damage occurs.
And if you need both wind and flood coverage for the same storm? You could face both your hurricane deductible and your flood insurance deductible. For many homeowners, that's potentially tens of thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket costs before any insurance money arrives.
What the Quiet 2025 Season Means for Your 2026 Rates
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season was unusual in the best possible way. Despite forecasts predicting above-normal activity, the season ended with 13 named storms and zero U.S. hurricane landfalls—the first time that's happened in 10 years and the first time since 2019 that Florida wasn't hit by a tropical cyclone.
For the insurance market, this created some much-needed stability. After years of catastrophic losses and rate increases—especially in states like Florida and Louisiana—insurers finally got a break. Total insured losses from natural catastrophes in 2025 came in at $107 billion, down 24% from 2024's $141 billion. The costliest hurricane event of 2025, Hurricane Melissa, caused an estimated $2.5 billion in insured losses—significant, but not catastrophic.
The result? For the first time since 2017, property insurance rates are actually decreasing in some markets. In Florida, Citizens Insurance plans to cut rates by an average of 2.6% statewide for 2026, with 60% of customers potentially seeing an average 11.5% premium decrease. Other insurers in high-risk states are filing for decreases rather than the double-digit increases that became routine in recent years.
But don't expect this trend to last forever. Industry experts predict overall property insurance premium growth of about 5.5% in 2025, slowing to roughly 3% in 2026. That's a welcome deceleration, but it's still growth. And one active hurricane season could reverse these gains quickly. Louisiana, for example, saw rates jump 38% in 2024 with another 27% increase projected for 2025, driven by accumulated losses from previous years.
Why Climate Change Means You Need to Rethink Flood Risk
Even with a quiet 2025 hurricane season, there's a larger trend you can't ignore: extreme rainfall events are getting dramatically more frequent. What meteorologists used to call a "100-year rainfall event"—meaning it had a 1% chance of happening in any given year—now occurs roughly every 25 years in many areas. Some research shows these rare events almost doubling in frequency for every degree of warming.
For coastal areas, the news is even more sobering. Princeton researchers predict that 100-year coastal floods could become annual events in New England and occur every 1 to 30 years along the Southeast Atlantic and Gulf Coast. Translation: if you thought you were safe from flooding because you're not in a designated flood zone, think again.
This matters because flood insurance isn't just for people in FEMA-designated high-risk flood zones anymore. About 25% of flood claims come from properties outside high-risk areas. When extreme rainfall becomes more common, inland properties that never flooded before suddenly face water damage. And remember: your homeowners insurance won't cover a penny of that flood damage, no matter how many years you've paid premiums.
How to Protect Yourself in 2026
First, pull out your homeowners insurance policy and check what deductibles you actually have. Look for three things: your standard deductible, any wind/hail deductible, and any hurricane or named storm deductible. If you see percentages, do the math based on your dwelling coverage to know what you'd actually pay out of pocket.
Second, seriously consider flood insurance even if you're not in a high-risk flood zone. With 100-year rainfall events now happening every 25 years, your risk profile has changed whether FEMA's maps reflect it or not. The average flood claim is around $30,000—can you afford that out of pocket? Flood insurance outside high-risk zones is often surprisingly affordable because fewer people buy it.
Third, if you're in a hurricane-prone state, shop around for 2026 coverage now while rates are stabilizing. The market has more competition and capacity than it's had in years, and some insurers are actually competing for business with rate decreases. That won't last if we get hit with an active hurricane season.
Finally, remember that 30-day waiting period for flood insurance. Don't wait until June when hurricane season is already underway and storms are forming. Get your coverage in place now, during the off-season, so you're protected when the next storm threatens.
Hurricane insurance in 2026 is really a combination of coverage you need to piece together yourself: homeowners insurance for wind damage, flood insurance for water damage, and a clear understanding of which deductibles apply when. The quiet 2025 season bought us some breathing room and potentially lower rates, but climate trends point toward more frequent extreme weather ahead. The time to get your coverage right is now, before the next storm forms.
