How to weather hurricane season

Now is the time to prepare for the upcoming storm

With hurricane season here, it’s a good time to evaluate whether you have enough insurance to get through the next weather disaster.

Use the next few weeks to examine your policies and call your insurance agent to determine if your home and vehicles are adequately covered for hur- ricanes, floods and heavy rains.

Here are a few factors to consider:

Vehicles: Texas drivers lost 250,000 vehicles during Hurricane Harvey because they either drove through high water or rising water swamped their cars.

To cover flooding, you need comprehensive coverage which also covers damage from hail and debris.

Comprehensive coverage is not mandatory in Texas, although lenders typically require borrowers to carry it.

Insurance experts advise drivers against dropping the coverage once their loans are paid off.

“It just provides so much protection to your vehicle,” said Mark Hanna, spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas in Austin, a trade group of 400 insurance companies in Texas.

Comprehensive insurance typically costs the average Texas driver about $200 a year in Texas, according to the Quote Wizard, an on-line system to compare insurance prices. If you want a lower premium, choose a policy with a higher deductible. Homeowners: Homeowners

Bob Owen / San Antonio Express-News Gray Gant, 51, who grew up in Port Aransas, sits on the pile of rubble that was the house he lived in when Hurricane Harvey hit in 2017. He received a letter of denied coverage from FEMA.

Jerry Lara / San Antonio Express-News Texas drivers lost 250,000 vehicles during Hurricane Harvey because they either drove through high water or rising water swamped their cars.

Eric Gay / Associated Press With hurricane season here, it’s a good time to evaluate whether you have enough insurance to get through the next weather disaster.

William Luther / San Antonio Express-News Work continues along the new drainage channel project, just north of Olmos Basin, which is designed to alleviate flooding in the Shearer Hills and Ridgeview neighborhoods.