Miami has a claims problem that most of Florida does not: the water shows up without a storm attached to it. Tropical Storm Eta dropped more than 13 inches of rain on parts of South Florida over two days in November 2020. Less than three years later, an April 2023 flash flood dumped over 13 inches on Coconut Grove alone, flooding a Florida International University parking lot and soaking homes across the metro with no hurricane on the map. Neither event needed a landfall to do six figures of damage.
Miami floods without a hurricane on the map, and Coyne Commercial Group represents the homeowners, condominium and HOA associations, and commercial property owners left to prove what rain, not wind, actually did to their property, from first inspection through final settlement. We work Miami-Dade County and neighboring Broward and Monroe on a contingency basis: no recovery, no fee.
Miami property owners are also living through the most disruptive stretch of the condo insurance market in a generation, with mandatory structural inspections, special assessments running into six figures, and a private market absorbing tens of thousands of owners pushed out of Citizens Property Insurance. In a market moving this fast, an undocumented claim is a claim that settles for less than it should.
What Miami property owners have been through.
South Florida flash flood
The same system that record-flooded Fort Lauderdale dropped more than 13 inches of rain on Miami's Coconut Grove neighborhood, flooded a Florida International University parking lot, and left the broader Miami metro with 3 to 5 inches of rain, all without a hurricane in the forecast.
Tropical Storm Eta
Eta dropped more than 13 inches of rain on parts of South Florida in roughly two days, flooding yards and patios across Miami-Dade. The City of Miami logged 50 storm-related service calls and 15 downed-wire reports, concentrated in the Edgewater area.
Hurricane Irma
Irma pushed storm surge of 3 to 5 feet along the Biscayne Bay shoreline from Homestead to downtown Miami and Brickell, peaking just over 6 feet in isolated spots in Coconut Grove and Brickell, with sustained coastal winds of roughly 65 to 70 mph. Miami-Dade recorded 1,585 damaged structures and 55,012 insurance claims countywide.
Recurring king-tide flooding
Miami Beach experiences seasonal "sunny day" tidal flooding most falls, typically September through November, a trend NOAA tracks as growing in its Annual High Tide Flooding Outlook. It reaches low-lying areas such as Miami Beach and Brickell without any storm in the forecast.
Miami-Dade's coastal skyline includes a large share of aging condo towers. Some reporting suggests a meaningful share of South Florida's coastal condo inventory was built before 1990 and is now reaching structural and plumbing end-of-life, though that figure comes from a single industry source rather than a government count. Much of the older housing stock in the region, including homes built before 1975, is also reported to carry original cast-iron plumbing prone to corrosion with age.
Inland from the coast, Miami mixes low-lying single-family neighborhoods and the tree-canopied streets of Coconut Grove, which took more than 13 inches of rain in the April 2023 storm. A property's elevation and age matter as much as its construction type when a flash flood or king tide moves through, and that is exactly the kind of detail a carrier will not volunteer.
Florida's SB 4-D and SB 154 now require milestone structural inspections for condo and co-op buildings three stories or taller once they reach 25 years old within three miles of the coast, or 30 years old otherwise, along with decade-cycle reserve studies and full reserve funding. Post-Surfside special assessments have run well over $100,000 per unit at some buildings, with owners at Mediterranean Village in northeastern Miami-Dade County facing assessments as high as $400,000, while condo premiums have risen roughly 102 percent over three years according to the Insurance Information Institute.
At the same time, Citizens Property Insurance policy counts in Miami-Dade fell 52 percent year over year in 2025 data, part of a broader retreat that has pushed tens of thousands of owners onto newer private carriers with shorter track records in this market. Between the assessments, the premium spikes, and the carrier turnover, Miami property owners are navigating one of the least forgiving insurance climates in the state, and that makes documentation the difference between a fair settlement and a shortfall the owner absorbs.
What decides a commercial, condo, or HOA claim in Miami.
Non-hurricane flood claims still carry a full master-policy deductible
When events like the April 2023 flash flood or Eta send water into ground-floor units, garages, and common areas, the association's master policy deductible still applies in full even though no hurricane was declared. Documenting the rainfall data, the drainage failure, and the extent of the water intrusion across the property is what supports a claim proportional to the actual loss.
Milestone inspections and special assessments raise the stakes on every claim
With SB 4-D structural inspections and reserve-funding requirements now in force, and special assessments running as high as $400,000 per unit at buildings like Mediterranean Village, boards cannot afford to leave insurance dollars on the table. A properly documented claim that captures the full scope of storm or water damage helps offset costs the association is already absorbing from the inspection mandate.
Loss of rents and business interruption are their own claims
While units or commercial space sit unusable after a flood or storm event, the income the property stops earning is generally a separate covered loss with its own documentation. On Miami association and commercial claims, it is frequently the most under-claimed line item on the file.
What decides a homeowner claim in Miami.
Flooding without a hurricane is still a covered event, if it is documented
Eta and the April 2023 storm both dumped over 13 inches of rain on parts of Miami without a named hurricane making landfall. Carriers sometimes treat non-hurricane flood claims as lower priority or push owners toward flood policy exclusions that do not actually apply. Establishing the rainfall total, the drainage failure, and the damage pattern with real documentation is what separates a paid claim from a denied one.
King-tide and repeat flooding needs its own record
Low-lying Miami Beach and Brickell properties can take on water during seasonal king tides with no storm at all. When flooding recurs, carriers look for patterns that suggest pre-existing damage or maintenance issues rather than a new, covered loss. Documenting each event separately, as it happens, protects a homeowner from having a legitimate new claim written off as old damage.
Older coastal homes fight matching and cast-iron disputes
On older coastal properties, carriers often propose a patch repair when Florida's matching requirement and, where applicable, code-upgrade coverage can support a more complete result. Where cast-iron plumbing is involved, carriers frequently argue the failure is age and wear rather than a sudden, covered event, a dispute that turns on documented evidence, not assumption.
Miami owners, boards, and managers: what they ask us.
Does the association or the unit owners file after a flood?
Generally both, but non-hurricane flooding tends to blur that line faster than hurricane damage does. The association is generally responsible for garages, lobbies, and building systems; an owner's own policy responds to their unit. When rainwater backs up through a garage or ground floor with no hurricane on record, carriers on both sides can be quick to point at each other, so a dated record of exactly where the water reached is what settles the question instead of a dispute.
Our building just got hit with a six-figure SB 4-D assessment. Can insurance offset that?
Not directly, the assessment itself covers structural and reserve-funding requirements rather than storm or water damage. But a fully documented insurance claim for any covered flood, wind, or water loss the building has suffered can recover money the association would otherwise have to raise separately, which matters when owners are already absorbing a large assessment.
Can we recover the rent we lost while a unit or commercial space was down for repairs?
Generally yes, and it holds even when the cause was a flash flood rather than a named hurricane. If a unit or commercial space was uninhabitable or unusable after an event like the April 2023 storm, the rental income lost during that period is typically its own covered claim, separate from the property damage payout, built from lease and occupancy records rather than assumed.
What does a presentation for our board or management company look like?
Thirty to forty-five minutes, in person or over lunch: what a public adjuster does, what Florida law requires of carriers, how associations protect themselves before and after a loss, and what proper documentation looks like. No cost and no obligation, and boards are welcome to bring their property manager and counsel.
Our home flooded but there was no hurricane. Are we still covered?
It depends on your policy and the cause of the water. Rainfall and drainage-related flooding from events like Eta or the April 2023 storm can trigger coverage under the right policy, while separately, standard homeowner policies generally exclude rising floodwater unless you carry flood insurance. A free review tells you what your specific policy covers and what the documentation supports.
Our unit keeps taking on water during king tide season. Can we claim that every year?
Each flooding event is generally its own potential claim, but repeated flooding invites carriers to argue the damage is pre-existing or maintenance-related rather than new. Documenting each event as it happens, with dates, photos, and a clear description of what water reached and when, is what keeps a legitimate recurring loss from being dismissed as old damage.
We think our Irma settlement from 2017 was too low. Is it too late to do anything?
It depends on when the claim was reported and where it stands now. Florida law set strict windows for new and supplemental hurricane claims, and for a claim from 2017 those windows have almost certainly passed. If the claim was timely reported and remains open or in dispute, options such as appraisal or a referral to a property insurance attorney may still be available. We review it free and tell you honestly where things stand.
Do you handle claims across Miami-Dade, not just the city of Miami?
Yes. We serve all of Miami-Dade County, including Coconut Grove, Brickell, Edgewater, and the surrounding communities, plus neighboring Broward, Monroe, and Collier counties.
General information only, not legal advice or a coverage determination. Coverage depends on your specific policy, the facts of your loss, and current Florida law.
General information only, not legal advice or a coverage determination. Coverage depends on your specific policy, the facts of your loss, and current Florida law.
Who we represent in Miami.
Homeowners
Hurricane, wind, water, mold, and fire claims on Miami homes, documented and pursued for full value.
Residential claims →Associations, Boards & Operators
Master-policy, common-element, and large-loss commercial claims for Miami condominiums, HOAs, and multifamily operators.
Commercial claims →Claim types we handle in Miami.
Claim guides for Miami property owners
Plain-English answers from a Florida licensed public adjuster on the claim questions Miami homeowners, boards, and commercial owners ask most.
Second Opinion on Your Insurance Settlement in FL | CCG
A second opinion on your Florida insurance settlement can confirm you are getting what your policy owes, or show you what the insurer missed. Get a free review from Coyne Commercial Group before you sign.
Read the guide →Emergency Mitigation After a Loss: Duties Clause | CCG
Your insurance policy requires emergency mitigation after a loss, but there's a right way and a wrong way to do it. Here's what Florida's duties clause actually asks of you, and how to protect your claim while you protect your property.
Read the guide →Insurance Bad Faith in Florida: What It Means | CCG
Learn what insurance bad faith means under Florida law, the warning signs after a denied or underpaid claim, and how a well-documented public adjuster claim file supports you either way.
Read the guide →A CAM's Guide to Proof of Loss in Florida | CCG Sanford
A community association manager carries real responsibility for the proof of loss form. Here is what every Florida CAM needs to get right.
Read the guide →King tide flood claims (September 2026)/Water damage claims/Condo and HOA boards/All claim guides/Public adjuster FAQ
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A 30 to 45 minute lunch-and-learn for your board, management team, or office: what Florida law requires of carriers, how associations and operators protect themselves before and after a loss, and what proper documentation looks like. No cost, no obligation.
Serving Miami-Dade County and the surrounding Broward, Monroe, Collier county area.
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