Eligibility Changes to the NFIP's Preferred Risk Policies
Thank you to those who attended PIA National's September 27, 2010 webinars about the eligibility changes to the NFIP's Preferred Risk Policies. The resources below are intended to assist both attendees of these webinars as well as those who were unable to attend.
Resources:
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Webinar Archive (provided courtesy of Hartford Flood)
PLEASE NOTE: In order to view the archived webinar, you may be asked to "register" for what appears to be a live webinar. In actuality you are registering to view the archived webinar which will be available to you immediately after entering the requested information.
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- Resources from FEMA/NFIP:
Agent Talking Points (FEMA/NFIP) (PDF file)
Agent Fact Sheet (FEMA/NFIP) (PDF file)
Agent FAQs (FEMA/NFIP) (PDF file)
Where can I get more information on the PRP Extension?
Thank you to Hartford Flood, PIA's national WYO flood program partner, for hosting these PIA webinars. Click here to learn more about PIA's program with Hartford Flood.
Background Information on This Issue:
FEMA is making substantial revisions to the Preferred Risk Policy (PRP) eligibility for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). These changes will directly affect many agencies that sell flood insurance and could affect some of your current policyholders.
Why Did FEMA Make These Changes?
FEMA has announced changes to the eligibility for PRPs to help reduce the financial burden placed on some property owners whose buildings are newly mapped from a low hazard zone into a high-risk flood area. Details about these changes and what PIA members need to do as a result of them are evolving, however additional background can be found in PIA’s August 24th article here.
How Will This Affect You?
The changes to the NFIP’s PRPs require that all PIA member agencies:
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Understand the changes and their effective dates
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Understand how their agency practices must be altered
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Be clear on what revised procedures are required directly of the agency and which will be directed by the WYO with which PIA members participate
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Be able to field their customers’ many questions about these changes
Is This Time Sensitive?
FEMA’s changes to the PRPs reach back to remapped zones effective October 1, 2008 and forward. Changes apply on select new and renewal policies with effective dates of January 1, 2011. However, as of October 1, 2010, FEMA/NFIP will begin sending notices to current policyholders announcing these changes and the “potential” for a reduction in their flood insurance premium if they qualify. As a result, if you sell flood insurance there is a strong likelihood that policyholders will begin contacting you soon to determine if they qualify for a premium reduction.
PIA Webinars
PIA’s webinars were presented by:
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Rita Hollada: Rita is a nationally recognized expert on the NFIP, agency operations and E&O considerations in this area. Rita is PIA National’s representative to the Flood Insurance Producers National Committee.
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Karen Piacenta: Karen works for Hartford Flood where she directs their PIA member flood insurance program. The Hartford Flood WYO is among the five-leading WYO insurers in the country. The Hartford is a leading insurance carrier business partner of PIA members countrywide.
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Pat Borowski: Pat is a senior vice president with PIA National where she has been intimately involved with the NFIP and its impact on agents for over three decades.
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Lindsey Erickson: Lindsey is Director of Quality Assurance & Training for National Flood Services.
Together our team brings many years of experience and expert knowledge of the many details and layers needing to be addressed in the NFIP PRP changes.
Questions
Questions about this issue can be directed to PIA National at our dedicated flood insurance email address: flood@pianet.org.
PIA Member Rita Hollada Talks About Tennessee Flooding and NFIP on Fox Business Live (5/6/10):
PIA supports comprehensive reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). PIA:
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Opposes the addition of multiple peril (wind) coverage to the NFIP.
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Supports multi-year authorization of NFIP by Congress, in this case five years, in order to operate a balanced, consistent program.
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Supports the forgiveness of the NFIP’s debt, currently at $18.75 billion.
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Supports coordinated flood coverage for commercial policies in the area of business interruption insurance (BII). BII is currently only available in the private sector property market on a “covered peril” basis.
To learn more about PIA's position on the National Flood Insurance Program, read the August 2011 NFIP PIA Position Paper (PDF file).
