Flood Awareness | Gallagher USA

Is outdated flood data threatening your business?

Flood zones are constantly changing, and it’s difficult for most flood insurance policies to keep up. As flood frequency rises in the U.S., it’s crucial that businesses have access to accurate and thorough knowledge to ensure they have proper insurance coverage in place well ahead of an incident.

Flood risk is rising. What has changed?

2019 saw the worst flooding since 1927.¹⁵
July 2018–2019 was the wettest year-long span in the U.S. dating back to 1895.¹⁶
April 2018 and 2019 were the wettest months in recorded U.S. history.¹⁷
In 2017, 58% of FEMA flood maps were out-of-date.¹⁸

Flood risk is evolving. Shouldn’t your insurance?

Shifting rainfall patterns $3 billion in property damage due to inland flooding in 2017.¹⁹
Rising sea levels The frequency of high-tide flooding has doubled in 30 years.²⁰
Increased construction in the flood plain By 2050, over $190 billion of real estate could fall into high-risk areas for annual flooding.²¹
Rain-on-snow risk NOAA’s 2019 Spring Outlook cites record snowfall and rainfall for increased urgency of flood preparedness.²²

Flood risk affects businesses everywhere.

25% of businesses that close after a devastating event never reopen^23,24
$54 billion in estimated expected losses to U.S. economy per year from catastrophic events²⁵
$17.4 billion in damage to the global economy in 2018²⁶
$9 billion in estimated losses from commercial businesses²⁵
$12 billion in estimated losses from public sector²⁵

View Sources

¹ https://www.fema.gov/data-visualization-floods-data-visualization

² https://firststreet.org/flood-lab/research/understanding-fema-flood-maps-and-limitations/

³ https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2018/06/19/flood-insurance-only-way-protect-against-flood-event

⁴ https://www.iii.org/article/spotlight-on-flood-insurance

⁵ https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/which-natural-disasters-hit-most-frequently/

⁶ https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/03/19/spring-flood-outlook-nws/

⁷ https://www.consumerreports.org/flood-insurance/what-flood-insurance-does-and-does-not-cover/

8 https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2017-fema-faulty-flood-maps/

9 https://www.fema.gov/data-visualization-floods-data-visualization

10 https://www.fema.gov/news-release/2018/06/19/flood-insurance-only-way-protect-against-flood-event

11 https://www.propertyinsurancecoveragelaw.com/2018/12/articles/commercial-insurance-claims/flood-insurance-for-commercial-properties/

12 http://money.com/money/4528210/what-you-need-to-know-about-flood-insurance/

13 https://www.fema.gov/protecting-your-businesses

14 https://www.iii.org/article/spotlight-on-flood-insurance

15 https://weather.com/news/weather/news/2019-05-14-one-of-longest-lived-mississippi-river-floods-since-great-flood-1927

16 https://weather.com/news/climate/news/2019-07-09-wettest-12-months-us-history-again

17 https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/drenched-us-documented-its-2nd-wettest-may-on-record/329223

18 https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2017-fema-faulty-flood-maps/

19 https://www.ucsusa.org/global-warming/global-warming-impacts/floods

20 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jun/06/flooding-from-high-tides-has-doubled-in-the-us-in-just-30-years

21 https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/zahrahirji/climate-change-map-homes-flooding

22 https://www.noaa.gov/media-release/spring-outlook-historic-widespread-flooding-to-continue-through-may

23 https://newagencypartners.com/blog/25-businesses-never-reopen-following-disaster-will-one/

24 https://www.fema.gov/protecting-your-businesses

25 https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2019-04/55019-ExpectedCostsFromWindStorm.pdf

26 https://ourworldindata.org/natural-disasters