National Flood Insurance Program

And there was really only one thing out there to watch.

I want to give you a reminder that FEMA's request for information on the National Flood Insurance Program, this is a broad-based, everything to comment on about NFIP is on the table.

And so please take a time to look at that.

Comments are due by December 10th.

Well, thankfully for our industry and especially independent agents, you know, we work really well on a bipartisan basis.

A lot of the federal programs that we lobby on, like the National Flood Insurance Program or the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program, Federal Crop Insurance Program, a lot of these types of programs have broad bipartisan bicameral support.

So I think that we are playing with pretty good hand when it comes to those, regardless of which party controls Congress.

And, you know, I think we can move the ball forward on issues like mitigation.

That broader weather impact is also reflected in FEMA's recent decision to launch an online tool for purchasing home flood insurance.

For the first time, Americans can now buy flood insurance online through the NFIP without needing an agent, simplifying access at a time of super El Nino conditions and ongoing climate-related concerns.

This easier access, combined with a 30-day waiting period, is intended to strengthen preparedness for environmentally driven disasters.

On the topic of natural disasters, Mercury Insurance is urging homeowners, especially those in hillside communities and areas recovering from wildfires, to prepare for the heightened risks associated with El Nino.

It failed.

National Flood Insurance Program, for people who have flood insurance, I'm one of them, is a terrible policy.

We need common sense conservative leadership in Florida one more time to keep Florida as the best state in America.

Judge Weinberg.

And then third, I would say flood insurance reform.

Working to make the NFIP better over time, but also ensuring the private market is there to provide an alternative to that federally funded NFIP program.

That's the kind of stuff we hope will change over the next five years.

There's one thing that I know won't change in the next five years.

So this is new.

And this was beginning October 20th, that consumers in participating NFIP communities, you can visit floodsmart.gov. and obtain a National Flood Insurance Program quote and either the purchase the policy online, share the quote with an insurance agent, or request contact information for licensed agents.

So being outside of a lender designated high risk flood zone does not mean flooding is impossible.

It may only mean that your lender does not require flood insurance.

So basically, you know, when you are purchasing a property, you do want to find out if it's in a flood zone.

I think that's really critical to begin with.

And then you have to look at the NFIP policy, the best option.

Is it private flood insurance competitive? What are the building and contents limits? What's excluded? Is there any waiting period? How is the property's flood risk measured? And will improvements below the elevated floor be covered? And does the policy transfer when the property is sold? So those are all questions that you can definitely ask when it comes to flood insurance.

Flood is not in the property policy.

It's a separate contract written on a federal form through the National Flood Insurance Program.

And the flood policy said what?

$250,000 per building.

That's how everybody thinks a limit works.

That's how a limit works on almost everything else you buy, not this form.

What's the form? The Residential Condominium Building Association Policy, the RCBAP, it's the National Flood Insurance Programs Form for Condominium Associations.

FEMA publishes it as Form F-144, and the same text sits in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 44, Part 61, Appendix A, Part 3.