National Flood Insurance Program News

Virginia Honors Independent Agents for Efforts to Fill Flood Insurance Gaps

The Virginia House of Delegates passed a joint resolution that would designate the first full week in March each year as Trusted Choice Independent Insurance Agents Week beginning in 2019. HJ 703, introduced by Del. Buddy Fowler (R-Ashland), recognizes the …

Study: Houston Needs $2B More in Federal Funds to Fix Harvey Housing Damage

An estimated 130,000 Houstonians affected by Harvey were overlooked in the city’s original housing needs assessment, according to the Houston Housing and Community Development Department. To fix the previously neglected damage, the city needs an extra $2 billion in federal …

Hurricane Florence Likely to Expose Gaps in Flood Insurance

The number of Americans with flood insurance is on the rise, yet Hurricane Florence is likely to make it painfully clear that too many homeowners in the Carolinas and other vulnerable regions remain unprotected. . An analysis of federal flood …

Hurricane Florence Could Pressure Congress to Extend NFIP, IIAV’s Bradshaw Says

Hurricane Florence could put pressure on U.S. Congress to extend the National Flood Insurance Program, but “it is still an open question as to whether it will lead to a comprehensive reform bill passing,” Robert Bradshaw, president and CEO of …

A.M. Best: Insurers Equipped to Handle Hurricane Lane Losses

A.M. Best is expecting Hurricane Lane to be considered more of a flood event than a wind event. As a result, the storm that buffeted Hawaii should bring a potential triggering of the National Flood Insurance Program’s reinsurance program into …

ICT to Begin Annual Texas ‘Hurricane Tour’

The Insurance Council of Texas (ICT) is set to launch its annual “hurricane tour” aimed at reminding coastal residents to be ready in case a hurricane or tropical storm should make landfall this year. Beginning on Aug. 20, ICT’s Mark …

Report: Texas Failing to Enforce Flood Insurance Rules

Texas officials are struggling to enforce part of a flood insurance program that aims to elevate or remove severely damaged properties from flood plains, according to a newspaper investigation. The Houston Chronicle analyzed more than 36,000 insurance claims of properties …

Some Houstonians Spend Huge Sums to Elevate Their Homes After Harvey

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune. When Marni Axelrad and her family moved to Houston’s Meyerland neighborhood in 2015, they planned to stay there for years to come. They loved the community, and their kids were going to …

Note to Texas, Florida: Insurance Fights Over Sandy Rage On

The destructive floodwaters of Superstorm Sandy receded quickly, but some storm victims are still neck-deep in a battle over insurance payouts. And many victims of this year’s storms in Texas, Florida and elsewhere should brace themselves for a similar fight, …

U.S. Flood Insurance Program Expects $11B in Texas Flood Payouts

U.S. officials estimate the FEMA-run National Flood Insurance Program will make $11 billion in payments for flooding in Texas caused by Hurricane Harvey, the program’s administrator Roy Wright said. Additionally, in an attempt to make those payments more quickly, homeowners …