Colorado: The Storm-Ready Checklist

Shelter & mitigation money

No dedicated state-run storm-shelter rebate or grant program is listed for Colorado in the mitigation data reviewed for this page. Check with the state emergency management agency below for anything new.

NAIC's June 2025 hurricane-deductible list does not name Colorado; NAIC notes other states may still allow insurers to include one, and a separate wind/hail deductible can appear in any state's policy regardless (content.naic.org/insurance-topics/hurricane-deductibles).

Who to call, before and after

The hazards Colorado actually faces

• Extreme rainfall and flash flood

  Peak season: Jul–Sep

  Flash flooding is the deadliest hazard tied to rainfall, and most of those deaths are people driving into water they underestimated — six inches of moving water can stall a car, twelve can float one. Rainfall intensity, not just total inches, is what overwhelms storm drains and low-lying roads in a window of an hour or less.

• Riverine and coastal flooding

  Peak season: May–Jun

  Riverine and coastal flooding move on a slower clock than flash flooding — hours to days instead of minutes — which is exactly why households underprepare for it. Flood damage is excluded from standard homeowners' policies almost everywhere, so the financial exposure is separate from the physical one, and it is worth checking before, not after, the water rises.

• Lightning

  Peak season: May–Jul

  Lightning is the most common severe-weather hazard by frequency, and most strikes happen well before or after the heaviest rain — the 30-30 rule (shelter if under 30 seconds between flash and bang, wait 30 minutes after the last one) still holds. It is also the hazard households prepare for least, because it rarely triggers a county-level warning of its own.

Frequently asked