As the Northeast recovers from the third Nor'easter in three weeks and other sections of the U.S. prepare for swollen rivers from the spring snowmelt, thoughts turn to flood and insurance. Combined with the debates in Congress around renewing the financially strapped National Flood Insurance Program and flood insurance reforms, the issue is definitely top of mind for insurers and policyholders alike.

As many discovered during the hurricanes, mudslides and other natural catastrophes in 2017, most U.S. property owners are woefully underinsured and surprisingly unaware of the flood risks they face. According to a new study led by the University of Bristol, more than 41 million Americans are at risk — significantly higher than the current estimate of 13 million.

Key issues

To heighten awareness of some key issues around flood insurance and find out what insurance industry experts are thinking, PropertyCasualty360.com and RMS, a catastrophe modeling firm, are hosting a live Twitter chat Wednesday, March 14, from 1–2 p.m. ET using the hashtags #PC360Flood and #RMSFlood.

A few of the topics we'll be addressing include the following:

• How did the 2017 season impact the flood insurance market?
• What will change in the coming year to help the private market for flood insurance grow?
• What will be in the final flood reform/NFIP reauthorization bill?
• What work have CAT model vendors been doing on flood?
• How can agents and property owners respond to individual risk and lifestyle needs?

We have a great line-up of Industry experts participating:

• Christine G. Barlow, CPCU, managing editor, FC&S and author of the forthcoming Commercial Flood Insurance Coverage Guide from The National Underwriter Company
• Michael D. Brown, CPCU, vice president and property department manager, Golden Bear Insurance Company
• John Dickson, CEO, NFS Edge Insurance Agency Inc., a subsidiary of Aon National Flood Services
• Matthew Nielsen, senior director, governmental and regulatory affairs, RMS
• Craig Poulton, CATcoverage.com, a major provider of flood, earthquake and landslide insurance online
• Cliff Roberti, co-founder and managing principal of Federal Hall Policy Advisers
• Dr. Holly Widen, severe weather/climate researcher, RMS
• Dr. Joshua Woodbury, flood specialist, Swiss Re
• Loretta L. Worters, Loretta Worters Communications, insurance industry expert and communications strategist

I hope you'll join @PC_360 to share your questions, thoughts and comments.