The nation’s flood insurance program is struggling to balance affordability, flood protection and cost to taxpayers, leaving millions vulnerable at a time when climate change is driving flood risk higher.
Nationwide, just 2.4% of properties are covered by 4.5 million federal flood insurance policies, an Associated Press analysis shows—but 8.4% are at severe or extreme risk of flooding.
The problem is especially bad in eastern Kentucky—where in some ZIP codes, no more than 5% of properties are covered by flood insurance, even though hundreds or thousands of buildings are at extreme risk of flooding, according to figures from the federal government and data provided exclusively to the AP by the risk analysis group First Street.
It’s not just Appalachia—coastal areas, including parts of south Louisiana, stand out, too.
Flood maps, which are commonly out of date, don’t consider some types of flood risk, such as flooding from inland heavy rains.
The places with the biggest insurance gaps are those where heavy precipitation flooding occurs away from large water bodies, says Jeremy Porter, chief economist at First Street.
The typical cost of a flood insurance policy is $1,100 per year, up roughly 90% in the last five years, the AP’s estimates show.
Lake Charles resident Dan Charlson says he dropped his policy when the math no longer worked. His insurance shot up over time from roughly $900 to $4,000—an amount he expects to keep climbing.
“I’m looking at what it costs to fix the house, and the fact that I only flooded once in 50 years. So, it’s a risk analysis,” he says.
