Seven million homes are at risk of damage from Atlantic storms and coverage may be up in the air again.
After already facing a named storm this year, the flood insurance program is back in the spotlight. Yet again, after the disaster – both left behind by weather and in the expiration of the program – in 2017, the coverage program is due to expire.
Last year brought record-breaking damages from natural disasters and the full totals aren’t in yet.
This year, Americans are feeling less confident about their safety during the hurricane season. Moreover, the flood insurance program will once again expire if it is not overhauled or renewed. Millions of U.S. homes risk damage or destruction if this year’s Atlantic Hurricane Season is a bad one. There is a chance that Mother Nature could bring trillions of dollars in damages, according to a CoreLogic report.
CoreLogic, a real estate data provider, based its estimates on the recently released predictions issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). That forecast would have 2018 experiencing an Atlantic Hurricane Season that is either “near-normal” or “above-normal,” as was reported by Live Insurance News.
The report states that the flood insurance program would need to cover 7 million at-risk homes.
If the NOAA is correct, there will be 7 million homes at risk of hurricane storm surge this year. That number is about equal to the number of at-risk homes in 2017. However, despite the similar number of homes, the reconstruction costs have considerably increased over the last year.
In fact, they are forecasted to be over $1.6 trillion this year. That represents an increase of 6.6 percent when compared to last year’s estimate at $1.5 trillion. Higher costs for equipment, construction and labor are behind this rise.
The report also identified the top 10 metro areas at the highest risk of storm surge, including Miami, Florida; New York, New York; Tampa, Florida; New Orleans, Louisiana; Virginia Beach, Virginia; Fort Myers, Florida; Houston, Texas; Bradenton, Florida; Naples, Florida; and Jacksonville, Florida.
Once again, the National Flood Insurance Program risk expiring mid-hurricane season if Congress does not move to overhaul or renew in time. The federal program is the only flood insurance coverage available to residential property owners. Standard homeowners insurance policies do not typically cover the cost of damage from rising and overland water.
