With the National Flood Insurance Program expiring this month, the future of hurricane insurance claims remains in flux.

Most homeowner’s insurance programs do not provide coverage from flooding. This means that if a home is hit by hurricane damage, they may not be covered for any damage resulting from a flood.

For example, if a hurricane caused water damage from the roof or siding, that may be covered by homeowners insurance. However, if a hurricane caused flooding from a nearby creek or river, the resulting flood damage would likely not be covered by homeowners insurance.

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) was established by Congress in 1968 following Hurricane Betsy in 1965. This hurricane caused widespread property damage and loss of life, prompting the U.S. government to taking action.

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the NFIP “aims to reduce the impact of flooding on private and public structures” which it accomplishes by “providing affordable insurance to property owners, renters and businesses and by encouraging communities to adopt and enforce floodplain management regulations.”

Since the NFIP was passed, Congress has extended the National Flood Insurance Act through short term extensions. Since 2017, there have been 13 extensions passed with the most recent signed on Sept. 27. Following this extension, the program is set to expire on Nov. 21.

Although Congress is working to reach a longer five-year extension agreement, coverage will lapse if the program is not extended. If the NFIP is not extended, the reality of hurricane insurance claims will become more complicated. FEMA will still be able to pay valid claims with whatever funds are leftover, but there would be no new policies sold and older policies could not be renewed. This would affect millions of homes around the country.

The Future of Hurricane Insurance Claims

While consumers are worried about the future of the NFIP, others are worried about the cost.

The boundaries of flood risk areas are constantly being redrawn based on stricter guidelines and new weather patterns. The cost of flood insurance through the NFIP depends on a variety of factors including the risk that consumers are at. If consumers are in a high risk flood zone or if they are in an area that only recently began to get floods, they may see their flood insurance rates go up as the NFIP is extended.

“We’ve had two major storms in the last three years, and I think the areas that flooded during those times will probably have the most problems,” South Carolina relator Jeremy J. told WMBF News.

“I think oceanfront, your insurance is already expensive. It’s probably not going to affect those folks as much as the folks who are by the rivers that might get written into a new flood zone and it’s going to really put a squeeze on their budget.”

Considering the fact that the NFIP is reportedly in billions of dollars of debt, Congress may be considering higher insurance premiums in order to cover the costs.