There were an estimated 5.7 million residential homes with some amount of flood risk in the United States as of 2021, with nearly 4.3 million of those homes considered to be at substantial risk. Damage from flooding events is often extensive and costly, and analysis from the First Street Foundation estimates annual expected flood losses for the 5.7 million homes with any amount of flood risk could total $20.3 billion. Floods are an excluded peril in standard homeowners and renters policies, so those in areas with even the smallest threat of flooding will need to consider additional coverage to protect their home and property. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and provides a network of over 50 flood insurers as well as NFIP direct coverage for those looking to purchase flood insurance. Homeowners and renters may also choose to purchase a policy from a private flood insurer, and some combine both options by supplementing their NFIP policy with excess coverage from a private flood insurer. The NFIP saw its largest flood damage payout in August 2005 as a result of Hurricane Katrina. According to the Insurance Information Institute (the Triple-I), the NFIP paid total losses of $16,092,000 from the storm – an average of $95,640 per loss. They also report the net premium written by private flood insurers has seen an overall increase over the last few years, growing from $277,819 in 2016 to $506,820 in 2021. In the slideshow above, we look at which of these private flood insurers saw the most direct written premium in 2021, according to the Triple-I.

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