29 Jun 14.6 Million Properties are at Risk
Millions more properties in the US are now considered to be at risk for flooding based on information from a comprehensive national analysis by the Frist Street Foundation. Due to climate change causing rising sea levels and more extreme rainfall events, nearly 70% more American households are considered at risk for flooding than are represented by FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Areas. Around 8.7 million properties are listed as being in FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Areas, but as many as 14.6 million properties may be at risk according to First Street’s modeling.
Insurance requirements and policy premium pricing are modeled after FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Areas, but with this new data in mind, nearly 5.9 million households are at risk for flooding but are not required to hold a flood policy. Keep in mind, homeowner’s policies exclude flooding, so just because you may not be required to have a flood policy, doesn’t mean that you have coverage otherwise. Additionally, just because you don’t live in an area that would require flood insurance by law, doesn’t mean that your home is not still at risk for flooding, especially with this new data in mind.
“If you’re a homeowner, renter or buyer in this country and you want to understand flood risk, the only data that’s available to you are the FEMA flood maps,” said Matthew Eby, First Street’s founder and executive director. “And the FEMA flood maps are made to determine flood insurance rates — not necessarily to determine what your personal flood risk is.”
Across the country, nearly 6 million more properties are at risk and may be unaware of their current flood risk. However, the data shows that in most areas of Connecticut, homeowners’ risks were the same or greater based on this new data. It’s no surprise that homes along the shoreline are at a greater risk for flooding, but you may be surprised to know that some of the largest increases in flood risks were for properties farther away from the coastline. Additionally, the risk for flooding is expected to increase to 16.2 million, nationwide, by 2050.
Unfortunately, there are assumptions made by far too many homeowners about their risk of flooding as well as what their existing policies will cover. At Sava Insurance, we’re always putting our clients first, protecting what matters most: your family, your home, and your business. We’ve told our clients for years about the risks associated with not having a separate flood policy, but now more than ever, there is reason to believe that millions of homeowners may unknowingly be at risk of flooding. We urge all of our clients to look into the data for yourself to learn about how this data was collected and see what risk level your property likely has by visiting First Street Foundation.
If you have questions about the pros and cons of a Flood Insurance policy, or if you’d like Sava Insurance to get you a flood quote from one of our many carriers, give us a call today!
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