Victims of flooding events in the United States that are protected by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) recover more quickly, according to Guy Carpenter’s Protecting our Planet and the Public Purse report.
Homeowners that had NFIP cover recovered an average of USD 120,000 following Hurricane Harvey’s landfall in Texas while those that did not have the benefit of NFIP cover received less than USD 7,000. Without insurance protection, floods can wreak financial havoc on victims. Across Harvey’s impacted areas, only around 20 percent of individuals had flood insurance (1). The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) goal for the future is to change this by committing to a target of doubling flood insurance take-up over time across the United States. Crucially, FEMA has expressed support for a viable private sector market to support it in this endeavor.
Footnotes:
1. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Harris-County-homeowners-withoutflood-insurance-12973727.php
