Latest Flood Headlines
All the headlines from our Flood Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Southeast Officials Focus on Curbing Fraud, Rising Auto Rates, Flood Insurance, Distracted Driving
Jan 29 2019 // For the seventh year in a row, the Florida insurance industry, regulators, and consumer advocates will push for reforms to the state’s assignment of benefits issue that has now become an insurance crisis, according...
Texas State Senator Files Harvey-Inspired Disaster Relief Bills
Jan 25 2019 // Texas state Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills) has filed a legislative package addressing two significant concerns raised in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. Senate Bill 442 would require all homeowner’s...
Texas Senator Proposes Statewide Flood Control Plan
Jan 25 2019 // Before the next Hurricane Harvey strikes, and thousands of homes are damaged or destroyed, some Texas lawmakers want to make sure communities statewide are better prepared for future floods. On Jan. 22, state Sen. Charles...
Insurers Advised Political Volatility, Economic Slowdown, Floods Among Top Risks
Jan 24 2019 // As insurers track both old and new risks heading into 2019, here’s one that carriers don’t typically consider: The White House. David Wessel, director of The Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy, cited...
Hurricane Florence Demonstrates Perils of Being Underinsured/Uninsured, Says RMS
Jan 24 2019 // Hurricane Florence caused extensive freshwater flood damage in the Carolinas and parts of Virginia in September—and about 70 percent of those flood losses will be uninsured, according to RMS. “The insured loss for...
Private Flood Insurers Not Yet Ready to Fill Massive U.S. Protection Gap
Jan 24 2019 // The flood insurance protection gap in the United States is massive, but the take-up rate of private flood insurance continues to be low. The relative inability of private insurers to penetrate the flood insurance market...
Insurance Industry Use of Drone, Aerial Imagery Soared After 2018 Southeast Disasters
Jan 24 2019 // The importance of drones and aerial imagery rose to a new level in the wake of 2018 natural catastrophes as insurers made them an integral part of their disaster recovery procedures, particularly following the hurricanes...
Shutdown Stalls West Virginia Recovery From 2016 Floods
Jan 23 2019 // A program that helps people rebuild homes that were damaged or destroyed in West Virginia’s 2016 flood is being affected by the partial federal government shutdown. The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports a statement...
From Banks to Telecoms, Large Firms Disclose Risks, Opportunities of Climate Change
Jan 22 2019 // Bank of America Corp. worries flooded homeowners will default on their mortgages. The Walt Disney Co. is concerned its theme parks will get too hot for vacationers, while AT&T Inc. fears hurricanes and wildfires may...
Insurance Covered $90B of Natural Disaster Losses in 2018, Leaving 60% Protection Gap
Jan 22 2019 // The economic costs of last year’s 394 natural catastrophe events came to US$225 billion with insurance covering US$90 billion of the overall total, creating the fourth costliest year on record of insured losses,...
California Wildfires, Hurricane Michael Top List of 2018’s Costliest Natural Disasters: Munich Re
Jan 21 2019 // The costliest natural catastrophes occurred in the United States in 2018 with one of California’s devastating wildfires and Hurricane Michael topping the list, according to Munich Re. A report from Munich Re on last...
Declarations
Jan 21 2019 // Finding Flood Solutions “How do we make water our friend? How do we accommodate it? How do we use it? We can’t fight it. It is with us forever.” — South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster asked the...
For New Governors, Natural Disasters Will Be Necessary Priority
Jan 21 2019 // Even Governors Skeptical of Climate Change Can’t Avoid Need to Plan for Future Storms, Fires Governors have a range of priorities they want to tackle in the coming year, from tax reform to education. Yet, one topic...
Tennessee Insurance Head McPeak On Leading NAIC, Priorities Under New Gov
Jan 21 2019 // Tennessee Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak’s tenure as president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) may have come to an end, but her work as an insurance regulator will continue for...
Flood Coverage, TWIA, Workers’ Comp Relativities Among TDI Concerns in Legislative Report
Jan 21 2019 // In its 2018 Biennial Report to the Legislature dated Dec. 14, 2018, the Texas Department of Insurance made several recommendations to state lawmakers regarding issues the agency believes are worth looking at in the...
Boston Marks the 100th Anniversary of the Great Molasses Flood
Jan 18 2019 // Slow as molasses? This treacle didn’t trickle. It was a sticky, deadly tsunami that flattened an entire Boston neighborhood within seconds. This week the city marked the 100th anniversary of its most peculiar...
Enviro Risks, Climate Change Lead Concerns in World Economic Report
Jan 17 2019 // Environmental risks continue to dominate long-term concerns, a new report shows. World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2019 released on Wednesday included as collaborators Marsh & McLennan Cos. and Zurich...
Severe Weather in Canada Cost Insurers C$1.9 Billion in 2018: IBC
Jan 17 2019 // Insured damage from severe weather events across Canada reached C$1.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) in 2018, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), quoting statistics from Catastrophe Indices and Quantification...
Cabrillo Coastal Launches Flood Coverage for Dwelling Fire Policies in Florida
Jan 17 2019 // Cabrillo Coastal General Insurance Agency launched a flood endorsement for new or existing dwelling fire policies for its admitted program in Florida. The coverage follows Cabrillo Coastal’s launch of a flood...
Berkley One Expands into Florida, Ohio; Adds Flood Insurance in Select States
Jan 15 2019 // Berkley One, a startup insurance provider targeting the high net worth personal lines market, has expanded into Florida and Ohio. Working with select independent agents, Berkley One offers home, automobile, fine art and...
