Insurers may put a hurricane deductible on any Nassau or Suffolk home, but under New York's rule it applies only when a hurricane makes landfall in the state. A non-renewed owner near the water can use the Coastal Market Assistance Program: generally within one mile of the shore on the south shore and the forks, within 2,500 feet on the north shore. Behind it is NYPIUA, the state FAIR Plan, with fire and wind coverage, no liability, and a ceiling on the dwelling limit. Flood is always a separate policy.
Why insurers treat the Island as one long coastline
Three events sit in every underwriting file for Nassau and Suffolk.
- September 21, 1938The National Weather Service puts the landfall of the Great New England Hurricane near Bellport as a Category 3 with 120 mph sustained wind. About 60 people died on Long Island, thousands of homes and cottages were destroyed or damaged, and the storm cut ten new inlets between Fire Island and East Hampton. Shinnecock Inlet is the one that stayed.
- October 29, 2012Sandy came ashore in New Jersey, yet the National Hurricane Center's report counts around 100,000 Long Island homes severely damaged or destroyed, mostly by surge and waves, and more than 2,000 left uninhabitable. Water stood three to six feet above ground along the Nassau and Suffolk coast, about 200 homes on Fire Island were destroyed or washed away, and the highest surge a tide gauge measured in the state was at Kings Point on the north shore.
- August 12 and 13, 2014Islip recorded 13.57 inches of rain, which the Weather Service lists as the New York State record for 24 hours. No hurricane and no surge were involved, and the flooding ran through neighborhoods well inland.
State law reflects the same view. When an insurer plans a material reduction in its homeowners business, Insurance Law section 3425 requires a plan filed with the Superintendent at least sixty days ahead, and it tells the Superintendent to assess the effect on Nassau and Suffolk as whole counties, where in the city boroughs only the first mile from salt water is named.
Hurricane deductibles, and the credits that offset them
The Department of Financial Services (DFS) says some insurers require a hurricane deductible on homes in Nassau and Suffolk, commonly one to five percent of the amount of insurance on the dwelling. On a large house that is real money out of pocket, so the trigger matters. Under the amended Insurance Regulation 159, adopted in July 2025, a hurricane deductible applies only when the National Weather Service determines that the hurricane made landfall in New York State, and only to wind damage from 12 hours before that landfall until 12 hours after the last hurricane watch or warning for the state is cancelled. The insurer has to show both the percentage and the dollar figure on the declarations page, and has to demonstrate to DFS that there is enough hurricane exposure to warrant the deductible at all.
Read the quote for a second line, though. DFS describes a windstorm deductible as an optional feature triggered by wind of any speed, which would apply to an ordinary nor'easter. I point out which one a quote carries. See how New York hurricane deductibles work.
There is a statutory credit on the other side. Insurance Law section 2346 says the Superintendent shall provide for an actuarially appropriate rate reduction for homes fitted with storm shutters or hurricane resistant laminated glass windows or doors, and DFS tells consumers that insurers must offer the discount when every exterior wall opening is protected to the required standard. The same section allows, but does not require, a three-year reduction for completing a homeowner natural disaster preparedness course. If you have shutters or impact glass, send me the installation paperwork.
C-MAP and NYPIUA on Long Island
The Coastal Market Assistance Program is the first tool for a non-renewed shore home. DFS describes it as a voluntary network of insurers and producers, run by the New York Property Insurance Underwriting Association (NYPIUA), for owner-occupied one- to four-family homes and condominium units. The distance rule splits the Island in two:
- South shore and both forks: generally within one mile of the shore.
- North shore: generally within 2,500 feet.
You qualify with a non-renewal, cancellation or conditional non-renewal notice for any reason other than nonpayment. A buyer has to identify the home's prior insurer.
NYPIUA, the state FAIR Plan, is not limited to the shore. Its Basic form covers fire and the extended perils, including wind and hurricane. The Broad form adds items such as freezing, weight of ice and snow and accidental discharge of water, and in Nassau and Suffolk it carries a two percent hurricane deductible that applies when a Category 2 or stronger hurricane makes landfall in the state. NYPIUA states plainly that it does not offer liability, flood or theft coverage and generally settles on actual cash value. Its published ceiling is six hundred thousand dollars on a one- to four-family dwelling and two hundred fifty thousand for contents and living expense together. A home that costs more than that to rebuild needs another insurer above or around it.
That is what the wraparound is for: a standard insurer's policy endorsed to fit around the NYPIUA policy, adding liability, theft and personal property and allowing replacement cost on the building. If no admitted insurer will write, DFS says the excess line market opens after three admitted declinations; those insurers are outside New York's rate and form filing rules and outside the state security fund, which I disclose in writing.
One timing rule catches people every August. While the National Hurricane Center places a hurricane or tropical storm inside a box that runs from latitude 32 to 44 north and longitude 64 to 85 west, NYPIUA will not bind new or increased windstorm coverage, and it stays closed until 24 hours after the storm leaves. Standard insurers commonly have binding restrictions of their own when a storm is approaching. A closing in storm season should not wait for the forecast.
If you are holding a non-renewal letter
New York protects a homeowners policy for three years at a time. DFS puts it this way: once a policy has been in force 60 days, it may not be cancelled or non-renewed for a three-year period except for nonpayment, fraud or material misrepresentation, a crime or willful or reckless acts that increase the hazard, physical changes that make the property uninsurable, or a determination by the Superintendent. When the three years are up the insurer can decline to renew, with written notice mailed at least 45 and not more than 60 days before expiration that explains the reason.
So I look at two dates before anything else: when the policy was first written, and when the notice was mailed. A letter that falls inside the protected period for a reason like distance to the coast is one to take to DFS, which accepts complaints through its online consumer complaint form. The non-renewal rules page has the statute.
Flood is its own policy, and so is the basement
Sandy's damage on Long Island was mostly surge and waves, which no homeowners policy or FAIR Plan policy covers. DFS states that standard policies exclude flood and that coverage comes from a separate policy through the National Flood Insurance Program, usually with a 30-day wait before it takes effect. Private flood policies exist as well, and on a larger home an excess flood layer can sit above the federal limit.
The Islip storm is the reminder that rain can do the same thing miles from the bay. Water that backs up through a sewer line or overwhelms a sump is not flood in the policy's sense, DFS explains, and is covered only by a backup endorsement with its own limit. I quote homeowners, flood and backup together so the three line up.
What I need to quote
The address and how far the house is from the bay, ocean or Sound, the non-renewal letter and current declarations page, year built, roof age and material, any shutters or impact glass, the heating fuel, updates to wiring and plumbing, whether the basement is finished, claims in the last five years, and the date coverage must start. An elevation certificate helps on flood if you have one.
Common questions
Who insures homes near the water on Long Island?
Standard insurers write many of them, with a hurricane deductible. For a non-renewed owner-occupied home near the shore there is the Coastal Market Assistance Program, and behind it NYPIUA, the state FAIR Plan.
How close to the shore do I have to be for C-MAP?
DFS says generally within one mile on the south shore and the forks, and within 2,500 feet on the north shore. You also need a non-renewal or cancellation notice for a reason other than nonpayment.
When does a hurricane deductible apply in Nassau or Suffolk?
Only when the National Weather Service determines a hurricane made landfall in New York State, and only to wind damage from 12 hours before landfall until 12 hours after the last watch or warning for the state is cancelled.
Is the New York FAIR Plan enough for a Long Island house?
Often not by itself. NYPIUA has no liability, flood or theft coverage and caps the dwelling limit, so most owners pair it with a wraparound policy and a flood policy.
Do storm shutters lower home insurance on Long Island?
They should. Insurance Law section 2346 directs a rate reduction for homes with storm shutters or hurricane resistant laminated glass, and DFS says insurers must offer it when all exterior wall openings are protected to the standard.
Can my insurer non-renew because I live near the coast?
Not inside the three-year required policy period, where only the reasons listed in Insurance Law section 3425 are allowed. At the end of the three years it can, with 45 to 60 days' written notice stating the reason.
Does homeowners insurance cover storm surge?
No. Surge is flood, which needs a separate policy from the National Flood Insurance Program or a private flood insurer.
General information about home insurance on Long Island as of November 2026, not legal advice. Non-renewal rules come from New York Insurance Law section 3425, hurricane deductible rules from Insurance Regulation 159, and C-MAP and NYPIUA terms from those programs and the Department of Financial Services; they change. Storm figures are from the National Hurricane Center and the National Weather Service. Coverage depends on the policy issued. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.