Since the City of Charleston entered the National Flood Insurance Program in 1971, a total of 4,339 properties have made a total of 6,607 flood insurance claims. This amounted to over $117.3 million in flood insurance claims payments in the last 50 years, with $65.6 million in claims payments in only the last 10 years. These statistics place Charleston in the top tier nationally for flood damage. The City’s goal is to focus coordinated decision making through the lens of reducing damage from flooding events, which can not only lighten the emotional hardship of flooding, but also ease the financial burden to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
FEMA’s Community Rating System is a voluntary incentive program under the NFIP that recognizes communities for flood risk reduction activities that exceed the minimum requirements for participation in the NFIP. The Community Rating System (CRS) encourages a comprehensive approach to floodplain management in order to reduce flood damage to property. Each measure taken by the City to provide additional protection from flooding is rewarded with a certain number of points, which are totaled to correspond to a particular classification on the rating scale. With each improved rating comes an increase in the discount of flood insurance premiums to policy holders in the City.
Through our efforts as participants in the CRS, the City is working to not only reduce the risk of flood damage, but also reduce the costs of living in a flood-prone region by rewarding its citizens with flood insurance premium discounts. In support of the CRS, a collaborative approach across nearly all City departments emphasizes the identification of opportunities for policy, outreach, and preparedness that make Charleston a safer place for all.
In 2015, the City received a class 6 CRS rating. The City is due for a CRS visit before the end of 2020. Our goal is to achieve a class 5 rating in our 2020 visit which will provide an addtional 5% reduction in flood insurance premiums for homeowners living in the Special Flood Hazard Area(SFHS) and a class 4 rating in 2023 for another addtional 5% reduction in SFHA insurance premiums.
| Class | Total Points Needed | Year Achieved/Target | Premium Reduction (total dollars) | SFHA Reduction | Non-SFHA Reduction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4500 | 45% | 10% | ||
| 2 | 4000 | 40% | 10% | ||
| 3 | 3500 | 35% | 10% | ||
| 4 | 3000 | 30% | 10% | ||
| 5 | 2500 | 2020 | 25% | 10% | |
| 6 | 2000 | 2014 | $5,609,755 | 20% | 10% |
| 7 | 1500 | 2004 | 15% | 5% | |
| 8 | 1000 | 2002 | 10% | 5% | |
| 9 | 500 | 1993 | 5% | 5% |