Flood insurance bill moves on to White House

WASHINGTON — After months of congressional back-and-forth, Congress has sent President Barack Obama a final bill that would cap many of the biggest premium increases faced by thousands of homeowners, according to Insurance Business.

If Obama approves the bill, the legislation would prevent FEMA from raising the average rates for nine classifications of flood policies above 15 percent, and rates on individual policies above 18 percent annually for nearly all properties, the article stated.

According to the article, it will also preserve the "grandfathered" status of homeowners who face unaffordable premium increases thanks to new and updated government flood maps.

"Some of our insureds are really seeing significant increases. We’re hoping the legislation alleviates a lot of that pain, because it has been very painful. It’s really causing folks to reevaluate their coastal properties," said Ed Howlett.

Not all in the industry are likely to be pleased, however; the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies has long stood in opposition to any delays or changes to Biggert-Waters, fearing the solvency of NFIP, the article noted.

"We remain in full support of reforms to the NFIP made by the Biggert-Waters Act and oppose any effort to delay or roll back pieces of the legislation," said NAMIC Senior Vice President Jimi Grande.

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