Pinal County homeowners can buy discounted flood insurance

Hundreds of Pinal County property owners now located in high-risk flood zones can purchase discount flood insurance prior to a Dec. 4 deadline.

A multiyear project to update the county’s flood hazard maps by the Federal Emergency Management Agency wrapped up this summer, but now more than 200 parcels have been placed in higher-risk flood zones and owners could be soaked with costly flood-insurance bills.

Many of the county’s maps hadn’t been updated in 20 years, and before the new maps become effective on Dec. 4, property owners can get their flood insurance policy at a savings, said Elise Moore, Pinal County flood control/traffic section chief.

“We want all the homeowners to assess their own risk,” Moore said. “We want people to go talk to their insurance agent before the first week of December because after that there’s no going back.”

Flood insurance is provided through a national program established by Congress in 1968. The national flood insurance policy can be obtained through most insurance providers. Currently, there are 784 policies in Pinal County as part of the National Flood Insurance program.

Property owners can purchase flood insurance at their old risk level prior to the maps becoming effective. By doing that, owners will grandfather in their property, and FEMA will then recognize policyholders as “loyal customers” because they will have a policy prior to the map changes. It will also save them hundreds of dollars.

To keep that cost savings, policyholders must maintain continuous coverage, Moore said.

According to Pinal County Emergency Management, flooding is one of Pinal County’s most costly natural disasters and doesn’t just affect property owners in higher risk zones.

“Obviously if you’re not mapped in a FEMA risk zone you could still get flooded,” Moore said. “A lot of the calls about flooding we get are from areas that aren’t mapped in high-risk zones.”

For information about the updated flood hazard maps, visit www.floodsmart.gov.