ecoRI News — For Many On Coast, Climate Crisis Means Rising Insurance Rates

The climate crisis is causing more frequent and severe flooding problems in Rhode Island, including in the Portsmouth neighborhood of Island Park. (Frank Carini/ecoRI News)

Sep 27, 2021

By Caitlin Faulds / ecoRI News Staff

The country’s largest flood insurer is changing how it analyzes risk, and it could signal a reckoning for coastal communities.

Next month the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) will switch from flood-map-based risk analysis to Risk Rating 2.0: Equity in Action. The new pricing methodology will take into account more flood risk variables and, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), will result in insurance rates that are more equitable and more agile in the face of the climate crisis.

“Risk Rating 2.0 is not just a minor improvement, but a transformational leap forward,” FEMA spokesperson Rosa Norman said. “Risk Rating 2.0 enables FEMA to set rates that are fairer and ensures rate increases and decreases are both equitable.”

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