URMIA 46th Annual Conference

The National and Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration predicts that sea levels could rise by more than six feet by the end of the century. Cities along the eastern seaboard like Boston, New York and Miami could be inundated by salt water during storms and unusually high tides exacerbated by erosion and destruction to property from wave action.

Flooding is not a coastal phenomenon either. Major rain producing systems and severe thunder storms can cause regional or local storm water flooding. Weather systems and snow melt can cause river network runoff, discharge and overflow.

Catastrophic floods cause widespread damage to property in the United States. Floods account for more presidential disaster declarations than any other events with over $5 billion in economic losses from flood per year. A property in a high hazard flood zone is five to seven times more likely to experience a flood event causing $100,000 or more in damages.

New FEMA flood maps with revised base flood elevation levels may lead to changes in the availability of flood insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program and private insurers. Demand for flood insurance will probably rise, the availability of adequate capacity and limits may decrease, deductibles may increase and premiums could skyrocket.

This presentation will help risk managers understand the changes in FEMA flood maps, new flood models used by insurers to assess and underwrite risk on a location and portfolio basis, and what risk managers can do from a risk control standpoint to help mitigate their institution’s exposure to Flood.

Learning Objectives:
 Benefit from this program by gaining a deeper understanding of the changes in FEMA flood maps.
 Flood modeling tools that underwriters and insurers use to manage their flood risks and set terms and price for coverage, and loss prevention measures that can be taken to help manage flood exposures.
 Attendees will learn how FEMA develops their flood maps, what goes into modeling and underwriting flood insurance, and what loss prevention devices are available to prevent a flood loss or when a flood does happen, what can be done to minimize its impact.