The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is here and will be especially active. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicts 60% chances beyond the normal season, and predicts 13-19 storms. With West Africa’s monsoon activity and neutral El Nino and La Niña conditions, warm ocean temperatures are poised to make this hurricane season more active than usual.
“In the 30 years at the National Weather Service, we have not had any more advanced models and warning systems to monitor the weather,” NOAA’s Director of National Weather Services Ken Graham said in a statement. “This outlook is a call to action: be prepared.”
Bankrate’s 2024 Extreme Weather Survey shows that more than four (26%) of US homeowners said they were not prepared for the potential costs associated with extreme weather events in the region. To avoid this being one of this hurricane season, make sure the storm is ready before it rolls through town. This is what you need to know.
It’s not just coastal issues: inland homeowners are also facing risks
If the 2024 hurricane season taught us anything, it means that every homeowner needs to stand up to not just those along the coast, but for the coming storm. “The risk from a hurricane can extend inland from the location of the landing,” says Caitlyn Fein, Kotarity’s forensic weather director. Cotality’s Hurricane Risk 2025 report found that there are around 33.1 million home properties with moderate or greater risk of wind damage in hurricanes. Combined, the total reconstruction cost value for these properties is $11.7 trillion.
Helen, a Category 4 storm that struck the southeastern United States, was a turning point in how hurricanes were prepared. The storm not only destroyed coastal communities, but also caused more inland “one in a 1,000-year-old rain event,” according to the fine. Some areas, namely North Carolina, northeastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia, gained almost annual rainfall in just a few days. However, most flooded homes were not found in federally designated flood zones. Therefore, there was no flood insurance. As a result, Cotality estimates there is a $3.05-47.5 billion gap between insurance and uninsured losses caused by Hurricane Helen.
Floods aren’t the only natural disasters that can lead to hurricanes. Hurricanes can lay tornadoes that can travel well beyond the first path of a storm. Cotality reports that Hurricane Beryl, which hit the Gulf Coast in late June 2024, produced an estimated 68 tornadoes across the US over three days. Some cyclones head north to Illinois, Kentucky, New York and even Ontario.
How to prepare for Hurricane Season 2025
It’s hard to think about bringing your home into a natural disaster, but if the worst happens, you’re happy you had a plan ahead of time. Below are some expert tips on how to prepare as a homeowner for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season.
Create inventory and take photos of your home
Your home insurance is designed to restore your home to its pre-fail condition after damage. And the most efficient way to bring your home back to its pre-fail state is to thoroughly document what it looks like.
Start by creating a home inventory. It can be a challenging process, but there are a few apps and other tools that can speed up the process. Go to your room and be as thorough as possible. The more details you have, the more useful it will also help you take photos of the interior and exterior of your home. If you realize you need to file a hurricane damage claim, having an accurate record of “previous” can help smooth out the “after” a little.
Make sure it is covered due to wind damage
Your home insurance may include financial protection against wind damage. However, this coverage is not guaranteed. Along the Gulf Coast of Texas, home insurance does not cover wind damage. Homeowners must purchase wind insurance either through the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) or through the private wind insurance provider. Similarly, in Florida, homeowners can opt to exclude wind coverage from their home insurance and obtain wind insurance through a state-sponsored fair plan or private provider.
It’s an expensive mistake to assume what’s covered by your insurance policy. The average cost of a wind and hail house claim was $13,511 in 2022. Since then, reconstruction costs have risen, tariffs have loomed, and both can drive the bill to the sky. Make sure you have the right coverage type and proper limits before the wind picks up.
Please take out flood insurance
If you have standard household insurance, you are not financially protected from flood damage. It is the most common natural disaster, but flooding is excluded from standard home insurance. Flood damage can be added soon. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) reports that an inch of flood water can cause approximately $25,000 in damage to your home.
Flood insurance is usually sold as a separate insurance policy. Most flood insurance, whether it’s a private provider or via NFIP, has a waiting period of 10-30 days before coverage begins. If you wait until the very end to get flood compensation, it may not be covered in time for the hurricane. If you live in a high-risk flood area, the lender may require you to carry coverage. As flooding will increasingly affect moderately low-risk and low-risk regions, this may be the season to explore flood exposure and insurance options if you don’t have policies in place.
Please check the deduction amount
Simply put, deductible is whether you need to pay from your pocket when submitting a claim.
Depending on how your home was damaged by a hurricane, you may need to make multiple deductible payments. If you have multiple policies that are all with the same provider, such as homes, winds, floods, etc., you may only pay the highest deduction if your home is completely lost. Alternatively, if the insurance adjuster lends half the flood damage and the other half to the wind, they may need to pay the deductible for each insurance contract if they are with different insurance companies.
Being familiar with the amount of deductions, the number you have, and the costs to them will help you avoid sticker shocks when filing a claim.
| Home insurance deduction possible | When your home is damaged by something covered by your policy, you will usually need to meet your deductible deduction to begin repairs. The deduction amount can be found on the Policy Declaration page. |
| It was named deductible storm | In 19 states and Washington, DC, household insurance has individual deductions for losses caused by storms with names like hurricanes. Named Storm Deductions are usually calculated as a percentage between 1-10% of the total housing limit. |
| Wind deduction possible | If you have another wind insurance, you will need to meet deductible wind insurance to cover these repairs. If wind coverage is included in your home insurance, you don’t have to worry about wind deductible payments. |
| Flood deduction possible | Flood insurance usually comes with its own deduction. |
Make an emergency plan
You may need to evacuate your home due to a big storm. Instead of scrambling at the last moments to bring it all together, plan ahead. Put together your emergency kits, plan for your kids and pets, and prepare for a blackout.
learn more: How to prepare your home for natural disasters
What if your home is damaged by a hurricane
You will return home after the evacuation order, but you will find that your roof has a large hole or that the basement is flooded. what will you do? To investigate, I asked Derek Royster, principal of Baker Tilly’s Forensic, Litigation and Assessment Services.
If your home is damaged by a hurricane, Royster says it’s important to act quickly and let the insurance company know. “We’ll report the claim to the insurance company as soon as possible before we hire a contractor for repairs,” Royster says. It’s likely that your home wasn’t the only one that was damaged by the big storm.
“In areas with widespread damage, it can be difficult to find a contractor. Some people are knocking on the door,” says Royster. To avoid fraud, Royster recommends that homeowners always check the contractor’s identity and “communicate with insurance agents and insurance companies in terms of who will perform the repairs.” Royster says that, like the Better Business Bureau, you can check contractor licenses through the state licensing board or other official websites.
When the contractor and insurance company are on the same page, they are almost ready. Before the repairs begin in earnest, Royster also proposes to obtain a written contract for the proposed work “defining scope, cost, estimated completion and payment terms.” As a homeowner, there is a limit to how much you need to pay before repairs begin. Restrictions vary from state to state, but are usually around 10-20%.
Homeowners should try to attend for the repair process. If that’s a timeline for shorter repairs, Royster encourages homeowners to try to “be there all the time.” For longer projects, he suggests doing more regular check-in. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and document the process while you’re on-site.
Once the repairs are finally completed, make sure to inspect your work before issuing a final payment. “You can do it yourself or bring in a third party,” says Royster. Before the repair is complete, revisit the original repair contract to ensure that the entire scope of work is complete.
