Recent storms proved to many South Beach residents and business owners why flood insurance is a necessity. Photo by Michael Menchero

A Common Disaster
FEMA Revises Flood Risks to Miami-Dade County Properties

By Eleanor McColloch

Some South Florida property owners could soon see a change in
their flood insurance policies, now that The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)  has developed new digital flood hazard maps, which could affect the perceived risk to properties across Miami-Dade County.

Effective Sept. 11, the new Flood Zone Maps, also referred to as Flood Insurance Rate Maps, are used by insurance companies to determine policy rates.

The changes are especially important to the roughly 48,000 policy holders in the flood-prone City of Miami Beach, where insurance is mandatory.

Floridians have overwhelmingly led the Nation as flood insurance policy holders with more than 2.1 million active policies, costing homeowners roughly $967 million in premiums, statewide. The figures are about a third of the costs paid by homeowners in the second most flood-insured state of Texas, according to the most recent data gathered by The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

At $3.5 billion, Florida comes in third in flood insurance claims only to Louisiana and Texas — states that experienced a combined $21 billion in payouts as of May, largely due to the catastrophic damage to properties caused by recent hurricanes.

Despite a recent deluge or two, Miami Beach has traditionally fared relatively well as far as flood damages, according to NFIP data, the city will now mostly be designated as Flood Zones “AE” and “VE.”

Zone AE is the flood insurance rate zone that indicates potential flood depths of more than 3 feet. Zone VE is the designation that applies to coastal areas that have additional hazards associated with storm waves. Flood insurance is mandatory in both areas.

FEMA revised the maps based on current ground elevation models, topographic data, decades of rainfall, and storm gauge information, in an effort to better prepare homeowners for the danger of the most common disaster in the U.S.

The agency urges homeowners to contact their insurance companies to ensure they have adequate policies. Residents and property owners who believe the flood maps contain errors can appeal by submitting scientific or technical information to the county.

To see your property’s official flood zone designation, visit miamidade.gov/derm/flood_zone_maps.asp or call the Department of Environmental Resources Management at 305-372-6466.

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