Georgia Flood Insurance

October 1 will bring a number of changes to the NFIP.  Some will affect premiums for policyholders in all risk areas. It is important to understand these changes as many of your customers will soon receive their 60-day renewal notices and may see a change in their premiums and policy terms including deductibles.

One Year Ago
This year’s peak hurricane season marks the anniversary of several major tropical storms and hurricanes that have hit numerous states in years past – just last year Tropical Storm Fay began one of the worst storm seasons in U.S. history. Fay hit South Florida on August 18 and became the first storm in recorded history to make landfall in Florida four times, causing more than $560 million in damage. Hurricane Gustav quickly followed, hitting Louisiana on August 31 and causing more than $6.6 billion in damage. Hurricane Ike came shortly after Gustav on September 13, bringing extensive flooding and wind damage throughout the Midwest and as far north as Pennsylvania. Damage from Ike is estimated at $24 billion.

Five Years Ago
The 2004 hurricane season is one Floridians won’t soon forget. The season got a late start with the first storm forming on August 1. Things progressed quickly from there with the development of Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley, both making landfall in Florida within 24 hours of each other. The season brought an additional three storms, Hurricanes Francis, Ivan and Jeanne, to the Sunshine State causing more than $42 billion in total damages.

Ten and Twenty Years Ago
Last year’s hurricanes aren’t the only storms that are still fresh in most people’s minds. Some property owners still remember other devastating hurricanes that struck long ago and resulted in years of costly clean-up and rebuilding. This September marks the ten-year anniversary of Hurricane Floyd, which made landfall in North Carolina on September 16, 1999. The storm traveled up the East Coast as a tropical storm and passed over Long Island and into New England, causing record rainfall and flooding across the east coast, with Wilmington, NC and Philadelphia, PA setting 24-hour rainfall records of 15.06 in. and 6.63 in. respectively. Floyd was one of the costliest hurricanes on record, with an estimated $4.5 billion in damage.

Hurricane Hugo marks its twentieth anniversary this year, as it made landfall and caused extensive damage to Charleston, SC on September 21, 1989. By the time it moved up the coastline and reached inland to Charlotte, NC, Hugo was still a Category 3 hurricane and ultimately caused 29 counties in North Carolina to be declared federal disaster areas.Hugo’s storm surge was the highest ever recorded on the East Coast and its 150 mile wide swath resulted in major damage hundreds of miles inland – it caused $7 billion in damage and remains the sixth costliest hurricane in U.S. history.

INFO FROM: info@floodsmart.com

Hurricane Season IS Flood Season
June marked the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season in the United States, which as you know, raises the flood risks for homeowners living not only along coastal areas, but inland as well. Eight of the top ten most expensive federally declared disasters have been caused by hurricanes, which bring heavy rains that can cause widespread flooding. It is critical that you reach out to your customers now to communicate their increased flood risk during hurricane season – especially considering that once a flood insurance policy is purchased, there is typically a 30-day waiting period before it becomes effective. Remind them that a standard homeowners insurance policy does NOT cover flood damage and encourage them to protect themselves with flood insurance.
They Can’t Afford to Wait
Past seasons have shown that storms can form as early as the beginning of June, which can bring severe weather to the Gulf and Southern coasts, the Eastern Seaboard, as well as far inland.  While storm surge caused by hurricanes and tropical storms can wreak havoc on coastal areas, hurricanes and tropical storms moving inland can bring torrential rains and high winds that intensify the risk of flooding for residents living hundreds of miles from the coast.
 
Summer thunderstorms that occur throughout hurricane season can also bring several inches of rain in a short period of time. These intense storms and heavy rains can cause severe flash flooding in a matter of hours, damaging local homes, roads, and structures. Even residents and business owners living in states that are not prone to hurricanes should be aware of summer flooding risks and offered flood insurance.

Protect Your Customers
Without flood insurance, property owners may have to absorb the financial losses caused from flooding on their own, potentially wiping out their savings. Just inches of water can cause thousands of dollars of damage to their home, and repair and clean-up after a flood is time consuming, difficult and expensive – many households can’t afford to NOT buy flood insurance, given the financial consequences floods can cause. Flood insurance can ultimately help save money and ease recovery.
 
Let your customers know that flood insurance is more affordable than they may think. The average flood insurance policy is around $540 a year and for homes in moderate-to-low risk areas, Preferred Risk Policies start as low as $119 a year.

Encourage your customers to visit www.floodsmart.gov/hurricane to learn more about the risks specific to their community during hurricane season and how they can protect their homes and assets with flood insurance. 

(This article came directly from Floodsmart.gov and its intended audience is the Agent.  This is still good information for the consumer and others.)