Hurricane, named storm and wind/hail deductibles
Short answer
A hurricane or named storm deductible is a separate deductible for damage from a storm the National Hurricane Center declares a hurricane or names. A wind/hail deductible applies to damage from any windstorm or hail. Either can be a dollar amount or a percentage of insured value. A percentage deductible is figured on insured value, not on the loss: ISO's commercial windstorm or hail endorsement takes 1%, 2% or 5% of each damaged building's limit or listed value, per occurrence.1 So a 2% deductible on a building insured for $10,000,000 is $200,000 for each occurrence, and the insurer pays nothing until the damage exceeds that amount.1
Cloudbreak team · Updated October 28, 2026 · 6 min read · 13 sources
Three kinds of windstorm deductible
| Deductible | Applies to | Trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Wind/hail | Wind or hail damage from any windstorm or hail | Each occurrence of windstorm or hail |
| Named storm | Damage from a storm the National Hurricane Center names: subtropical and tropical storms as well as hurricanes | The storm is named, or another event the policy defines |
| Hurricane | Damage from a storm the National Hurricane Center declares a hurricane (sustained winds of 74 mph or more) | The declaration, or a watch, warning or time window set by the policy or state law |
A policy can carry more than one. When it has no hurricane deductible, hurricane wind damage may fall under the wind/hail deductible instead.
How a percentage deductible is figured
ISO's Windstorm or Hail Percentage Deductible endorsement (CP 03 21, October 2012 edition) is the standard commercial form. It sets 1%, 2% or 5% for each premises and building in its schedule and applies it to each occurrence of windstorm or hail. Its rules:1
- A separate deductible for each damaged building, for the personal property at each building, and for personal property in the open; a building and the personal property in it each get one.1
- Specific insurance (a separate limit for each item, such as each building): the percentage of the damaged property's limit of insurance.1
- Blanket insurance (one limit over two or more items, such as two buildings): the percentage of the damaged property's value on the latest statement of values on file with the insurer.1
- The insurer pays the loss above the deductible, up to the limit, after any coinsurance reduction.1
What triggers a named storm or hurricane deductible
The trigger starts with the National Hurricane Center. It counts a tropical or subtropical storm from 39 mph of maximum sustained wind (1-minute average) and a hurricane from 74 mph. It issues hurricane watches 48 hours and hurricane warnings 36 hours before tropical-storm-force winds are expected.4
The exact trigger varies by state and insurer. Common ones are naming, a hurricane watch or warning, or a set intensity, with a window that generally runs from 24 hours before naming or landfall to up to 72 hours after a downgrade or canceled watch. The policy wording decides which storms count.6,7
Per occurrence, per season or per year
The ISO wind/hail endorsement and TWIA's commercial deductible in Texas both apply per occurrence.1,8
A named storm deductible may instead apply per event, per season or per calendar year. Per event, two storms in one policy period can mean paying it twice.9
Worked example
A made-up three-building apartment property with blanket coverage lists Buildings A and B at $8,000,000 each and Building C at $4,000,000 on its statement of values ($20,000,000 in all). A windstorm does $300,000 of damage to A and $120,000 to B; there is no coinsurance penalty.1
| Deductible basis | Deductible | Paid on $420,000 of damage |
|---|---|---|
| 1% of each damaged building's listed value | $80,000 each for A and B | $220,000 + $40,000 = $260,000 |
| 2% of each damaged building's listed value | $160,000 each; B's $120,000 loss is below it | $140,000 |
| 5% of each damaged building's listed value | $400,000 each, more than either loss | $0 |
| 2% of the location's $20,000,000 total value, once per occurrence | $400,000 | $20,000 |
Lender caps on windstorm deductibles
For new FHA-insured multifamily loans, HUD Notice H 2024-6 (April 17, 2024) caps a separate wind or named storm deductible at the greater of $50,000 or 5% of insurable value per location, up to $475,000 per occurrence. In the example above, 5% is $1,000,000, so the cap is $475,000.10
Fannie Mae's multifamily guide (effective October 26, 2026) caps wind/hail deductibles at 5% and named storm deductibles at 7.5% of the property's total insurable value; any stated minimum may not exceed $100,000 for a specific limit or $250,000 for a shared blanket limit.11
State rules
| State | Rule | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | The hurricane period runs from a hurricane warning for any part of Florida until 72 hours after the last hurricane watch or warning ends. Insurers must offer both a calendar-year and a per-hurricane deductible. | Commercial residential policies, such as apartment building and condominium or cooperative association policies |
| Louisiana | A named storm or hurricane deductible applies once a calendar year to all such losses; for a later storm the insurer may apply the larger of the unused remainder or the all-other-perils deductible. | Commercial property and multi-peril policies on Louisiana property from authorized insurers, issued on or after January 1, 2023, under $20 million of total insured value |
| Texas | TWIA's commercial deductibles are 1%, 2% or 5% per item, per occurrence, with a $1,000 minimum. | TWIA commercial policies in the 14 first-tier coastal counties and parts of Harris County east of Highway 146 |
Louisiana: under the commercial rule, an owner who has paid the deductible and then changes insurers, or renews with a different deductible, during the year is subject to a new one under the new policy if it has one.2
Louisiana: the policy wording decides which storms count. In a November 8, 2023 advisory letter on its homeowners statute, the insurance department said a "named storm" deductible applies to any storm the Hurricane Center names, subtropical storms included, while one written for a "tropical storm or hurricane" does not apply to a subtropical storm. The commercial statute defines a named storm the same way.3,2
Texas: on the coast, a commercial building insured with TWIA for $4,424,000, the maximum for a commercial structure and its contents combined, carries a 2% deductible of $88,480 per occurrence. TDI's October 1, 2026 order kept that maximum for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2027.8,13
Questions for the broker
- What is each windstorm, named storm and hurricane deductible in dollars, building by building?
- Is the percentage figured on each building's limit, its statement of values figure, or the total insured value at the location, and is there a minimum?
- What starts and ends the named storm or hurricane period (naming, a watch or warning, or wind speed), and for what area?
- Does the named storm or hurricane deductible apply per occurrence, per season or per calendar year?
- If flood is covered, what is its separate deductible?
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Questions
- How do hurricane deductibles work for commercial property?
- It is a separate deductible for damage from a storm the National Hurricane Center declares a hurricane, during a period the policy or state law sets, as a dollar amount or a percentage of insured value. A percentage works like ISO's commercial wind/hail form: 1%, 2% or 5% of each damaged building's limit or listed value, with the insurer paying only damage above it.1
- What is a named storm deductible?
- A separate deductible for damage from any storm the National Hurricane Center names: subtropical and tropical storms (sustained winds of 39 mph or more) as well as hurricanes. It may apply per event, per season or per calendar year.9,4
- Does Texas have hurricane deductibles?
- NAIC lists Texas among 19 states and the District of Columbia with some form of hurricane or named storm deductible (June 2025). On home policies, the Texas windstorm deductible applies to wind and hail from any windstorm. TWIA's commercial deductibles are 1%, 2% or 5% per item, per occurrence, with a $1,000 minimum.6,7,8
- Do you pay a named storm deductible for each storm?
- It depends on the policy: it may apply per event, per season or per calendar year. In Louisiana, it applies once per calendar year on commercial policies from authorized insurers under $20 million of insured value issued on or after January 1, 2023. In Florida, insurers must offer commercial residential policies both a calendar-year and a per-hurricane option.9,2,12
Cloudbreak
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Sources
Written by the Cloudbreak team. Numbers, dates and rules cite the published sources below.
- 1. Insurance Services Office (copy hosted by Independent Insurance Agents of Texas): Windstorm or Hail Percentage Deductible, CP 03 21 10 12
- 2. Louisiana State Legislature: R.S. 22:1267.1, Commercial insurance deductibles applied to named storm, hurricane, and wind and hail deductibles
- 3. Louisiana Department of Insurance: Advisory Letter 2018-01 (Revised and Reissued): Interpretation and Application of the Separate Named Storm or Hurricane Deductible (November 8, 2023)
- 4. National Hurricane Center, NOAA: Glossary of NHC Terms
- 5. The Florida Legislature: Florida Statutes 627.4025, Residential coverage and hurricane coverage defined (2025)
- 6. National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC): Hurricane Deductibles (last updated June 2, 2025)
- 7. Insurance Information Institute (III): Background on: Hurricane and windstorm deductibles
- 8. Texas Windstorm Insurance Association: TWIA Rating Rules (effective February 13, 2024)
- 9. National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC): What Are Named Storm Deductibles? (June 3, 2024)
- 10. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development: Notice H 2024-6: Wind or Named Storm Insurance Coverage, Maximum Insurance Deductibles (April 17, 2024)
- 11. Fannie Mae: Multifamily Selling and Servicing Guide, Part II Chapter 5: Property and Liability Insurance (effective October 26, 2026)
- 12. The Florida Legislature: Florida Statutes 627.701, Liability of insureds; coinsurance; deductibles (2025)
- 13. Texas Department of Insurance: Commissioner's Order 2026-10171: TWIA Policy Maximum Liability Limits (October 1, 2026)