September 13, 2011

During the passing of a hurricane or tropical storm, winds caused damage to a window of an insured residence causing wind-driven rain to enter the residence and damaging the insured's personal property. The winds of the storm did not directly cause damage to the personal property. The damage to the insured personal property was caused directly by the rain.

The wind-driven rain and windstorm are covered perils in our insurance policy. Our homeowners policy is an open perils policy for both dwelling and personal property coverages. What deductible should we apply to the damage to the insured personal property, the regular deductible, which is $250 in our insurance policy, or the windstorm deductible, which is 2 percent of the limit for personal property?

Puerto Rico Subscriber

The Puerto Rico Windstorm or Hail Percentage Deductible form, HO 03 10 10 08, states that the windstorm deductible is applied in the event of physical loss to property covered under coverages A, B, or C. Therefore, the wind deductible will apply to the personal property damage that your insured has sustained. With a 2 percent wind deductible, the minimum amount of deductible is $500.