Family learns homeowner's insurance does not cover landslides

WRANGELL — John Florschutz was surprised to learn that his parents’ homeowner’s insurance policy did not cover the loss from the Nov. 20 landslide that destroyed their home and killed his father, Otto Florschutz.

“I think it’s a shock to everyone I talk to,” he said last week. “What’s the point of home insurance. … You would expect flooding to be on the policy.”

But floods, landslides, mudslides and other “earth movements” are not covered by standard home insurance policies.

“There’s not a lot of people who know that,” commented Florschutz, who said he has talked about it with family and his c...