Langhorne, PA is more than 1,000 miles from the Florida coast and more than 100 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Far enough from any potential threat of hurricanes and flooding, right?

Wrong.

In 2008, Hurricanes proved otherwise, bringing days of rain, swelling rivers and causing financial headaches for many customers in parts of the eastern United States from Florida to Maine.

And with April 1 just 60 days before the new 2009 Hurricane Season begins on June 1, Kramer Insurance Center can help customers with their flood insurance needs before the rains start to fall and the waters begin to rise; especially since it takes 30 days after purchasing a flood policy for that policy to take effect.

Last year, Steven Kramer, agency owner from Langhorne, PA "waded through" this first hand - having experienced last year's flooding that came with Hurricane rains.

"By the time the storms came through here, it was a tropical storm, but it still kept raining and raining - it just wouldn't stop," Kramer said. "You wake up and it's raining; you go to work and it's raining, you go to bed and it's raining. And all the time it rained, you probably thought - I'm OK. I'm covered in case my house floods, I have Homeowners Insurance."

Not so fast.

Kramer Insurance Center says customers should consider two things:

1. Most homeowners, condominium, manufactured home, renters and business insurance policies exclude losses due to flood.
2. Everyone lives in a flood zone - anywhere it rains, it can flood.

"It is a misconception that flooding only occurs in coastal areas," Kramer said. "Kramer Insurance Center is all the way up here in Pennsylvania and customers were still being impacted by Hurricanes, which hit Florida 1,000 miles south of me."

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However, agents have time to talk to customers about why they should consider purchasing flood insurance. Since it is early April, customers can purchase a flood policy and have plenty of time for the 30 day waiting period for their flood insurance policy to take effect before hurricane season.

Compare this amount to the approximately $7,800 property owners may have to pay out of their own pocket if they have one inch of flood damage to their property, according to www.floodsmart.gov.

Kramer Insurance Center says customers need to ask themselves if they could afford to go without flood insurance, especially when floods are so common.

If customers live in a low-to-moderate risk area and are eligible for the Preferred Risk Policy, their flood insurance premium may be as low as $119 a year, including coverage for their property's contents.

Under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), customers can purchase flood insurance for up to $250,000 for their dwelling and $100,000 for its contents.

Why should customers consider purchasing flood insurance?

• Everyone lives in a flood zone - anywhere it rains, it can flood.
• Flooding is not limited to coastal areas. Floods and flash floods happen in all 50 states.
• Between 20 and 25 percent of all flooding events occur outside Special Flood Hazard Areas.
• Most homeowners, condominium, manufactured home, renters and business insurance policies exclude losses due to flood.
• Flooding is the most costly natural disaster in the U.S., causing more than $2 billion of property damage each year.
• Just one inch of water can cause costly damage to your property.
• A car can easily be carried away by just two feet of floodwater.
• A customer's home has a 26 percent chance of being damaged by a flood during the course of a 30-year mortgage, compared to a nine percent chance of being damaged by fire.
• Remember: It takes 30 days after purchase for a policy to take effect, so it's important to buy insurance before the floodwaters start to rise.
• go to www.kramerinsurancecenter.com for a flood quote today.