"FEMA Removes Data Showing Drop In Flood Insurance Policies"

"The Federal Emergency Management Agency has removed publicly available records from its website that showed hundreds of thousands of people had dropped their federal flood insurance policies in recent months.

FEMA pulled the records after E&E News cited the data in an Aug. 17 news article that revealed more than 425,000 people had discontinued their policies with the agency’s National Flood Insurance Program since October (Climatewire, Aug. 17).

The agency said it removed the records to correct inaccuracies and it did not know when the data would be restored. A note on FEMA’s website says the reports “should be available within the coming weeks.”

FEMA did not dispute E&E News’ analysis in August of the decline in NFIP customers and acknowledged there had been a “drop in policyholders.”

E&E News reported that the number of NFIP policies fell from 4.96 million on Sept. 30, 2021, to 4.54 million as of June 30 — a decline of nearly 9 percent. The NFIP provides most of the nation’s flood insurance, which is sold separately from standard homeowners’ policies."

Thomas Frank reports for E&E News September 12, 2022.

Source: E&E News, 09/13/2022