National Flood Insurance Program

What National Flood Insurance Program does

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is a federal flood insurance program established by Congress in 1968 through the National Flood Insurance Act and administered by FEMA within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The program provides building and contents flood insurance to individual homeowners, renters, condominium associations, commercial property owners, and lending institutions, with mandatory purchase requirements applying to properties in Special Flood Hazard Areas carrying federally backed mortgages. NFIP carries approximately $1.3 trillion in coverage for 4.7 million policyholders across about 22,500 U.S. communities.

The core technology is Risk Rating 2.0, a property-specific pricing methodology that prices policies based on individual property risk characteristics rather than zone-only actuarial tables. Supporting platforms include the Floodsmart.gov consumer portal, the agents.floodsmart.gov agent portal, the NFIP Quoting Tool and Agency Registry for direct-to-consumer lead capture, the Flood Map Service Center for flood risk lookup, and a Historical NFIP Claims tool. Distribution and servicing are delivered through a hybrid model in which over 48 private insurance companies participate in the cooperative Write Your Own (WYO) Program (in operation since October 1983) and NFIP Direct handles a residual set of policies, while FEMA retains the underwriting risk and sets policy terms.

Revenue is generated through recurring insurance premiums, with coverage forms spanning Standard Flood Insurance Policy Dwelling Form, General Property Form, Residential Condominium Building Association Policy (RCBAP), Preferred Risk Policy, and Group Flood Insurance Policy. The program paid $8.1 billion in net claims in 2024 and $87.5 billion cumulatively since 1978, and is funded by premiums with congressional appropriations to cover catastrophic loss shortfalls. The customer-facing go-to-market relies on licensed insurance agents as the primary sales channel, supplemented in April 2025 by a Direct to Customer Quoting Tool with a stated roadmap to enable direct policy purchases online.

Name

National Flood Insurance Program

Legal name

National Flood Insurance Program

Website

https://floodsmart.gov

Company type

Public

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The National Flood Insurance Program is a federal flood insurance program administered by FEMA, providing building and contents coverage to homeowners, renters, and businesses across approximately 22,500 U.S. communities through a network of 48+ private WYO carriers and direct channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Flood Insurance

NAICS

Direct Property and Casualty Insurance Carriers (524126), Direct Insurance (except Life, Health, and Medical) Carriers (52412), Insurance Carriers and Related Activities (524), Claims Adjusting (524291)

SIC

Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance (6331), Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411)

akta.pro primary industry

Flood Insurance (FSAJACAG)

Keywords

• Flood insurance
• Property insurance
• Catastrophe coverage
• Claims administration
• Risk assessment

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Flood Insurance Premiums: The NFIP generates revenue through insurance premiums collected from policyholders. Insurance policies are administered by FEMA and sold and serviced by a network of private insurance companies under the Write Your Own (WYO) Program and NFIP Direct. Premium revenue funds claim payments and program operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

The NFIP is a federal program that provides federally backed flood insurance to property owners, renters, and businesses across the United States. Policies are issued and serviced through a network of more than 48 private Write Your Own (WYO) insurance companies plus NFIP Direct, with pricing determined by the proprietary Risk Rating 2.0 methodology based on individual property risk characteristics. Coverage includes building protection (average $250,000 limit) and contents protection (average $100,000 limit) delivered via multiple policy forms.

Product overview

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is a federal government program administered by FEMA that provides flood insurance coverage to property owners, renters, and businesses across approximately 22,500 communities in the United States. The program offers approximately $1.3 trillion in coverage for 4.7 million policyholders. Distribution and servicing is handled through a network of 48+ private insurance companies participating in the Write Your Own (WYO) Program plus NFIP Direct. The core product portfolio includes three main policy forms (Dwelling Form, General Property Form, and Residential Condominium Building Association Policy), building and contents coverage options, and specialized products like Preferred Risk Policy and Group Flood Insurance. The program operates Floodsmart.gov as its consumer portal, supplemented by an NFIP Quoting Tool for premium estimates, an Agency Registry for agent enrollment, Flood Map Service Center for risk assessment, and Historical Claims tools. Agent and adjuster training programs support the distribution network.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Standard Flood Insurance Policy (SFIP) - Dwelling Form Flood insurance policy form for homeowners, renters, and condominium unit-owners covering buildings designed for up to 4 families or single-family units in a condominium. Provides building and contents coverage with average limits of $250,000 for building and $100,000 for contents.
• Standard Flood Insurance Policy (SFIP) - General Property Form Flood insurance policy form typically issued to owners or lessees of non-residential buildings or 5-or-more-unit residential buildings not eligible for RCBAP. Covers commercial structures and contents against flood damage.
• Residential Condominium Building Association Policy (RCBAP) Flood insurance policy form issued to residential condominium associations on behalf of the association and unit owners for buildings where at least 75% of floor area is residential. Covers building structure and common elements.
• Preferred Risk Policy (PRP) Lower-cost SFIP written under the Dwelling Form or General Property Form offering fixed combinations of building and contents coverage limits. Available for property located in B, C, and X Zones in Regular Program communities that meet eligibility requirements based on the property's flood loss history.
• Group Flood Insurance Policy (GFIP) Policy issued by NFIP Direct in response to a Presidential disaster declaration, providing minimum building and/or contents coverage for 3 years at modest premium to help communities recover after federally declared flood disasters.
• NFIP Quoting Tool (Direct to Customer Flood Insurance Premium Quoting Tool) Digital platform launched in April 2025 on Floodsmart.gov that enables property owners to receive customized flood insurance premium estimates and connects them with agencies from the Agency Registry. Plans include expanding to allow direct policy purchases online within the following year.
• Write Your Own (WYO) Program Cooperative program with more than 48 private insurance carriers who issue and service NFIP flood insurance policies under agreement with FEMA, distributing coverage through their own networks while the federal government bears the insurance risk.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% of U.S. communities have experienced flooding, demonstrating near-universal relevance of flood risk
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Write Your Own (WYO) Insurance CompaniescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 1983The Write Your Own (WYO) Program is a cooperative undertaking between FEMA and private insurance companies begun in October 1983. WYO companies are private insurance carriers who issue and service NFIP flood insurance policies under Financial Assistance/Subsidy Arrangements with FEMA. The program allows over 48 insurance companies to sell NFIP products through their existing distribution networks while NFIP bears the risk.
• NFIP DirectcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNFIP Direct is the direct servicing arm of the National Flood Insurance Program that handles policies directly for policyholders who do not purchase through WYO companies. It includes NFIP Servicing Agent and NFIP Bureau and Statistical Agent functions for support operations.
• FEMA Mapping and Insurance eXchange (FMIX)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFMIX center provides general inquiries support for NFIP at (877) 336-2627 and email ([email protected]). Provides flood map information, policy questions, and connects stakeholders with appropriate NFIP resources.
• Emergency Management Institute (EMI)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerEMI provides free independent study courses related to flood insurance and emergency management. Anyone can access these courses though FEMA Student Identification Number (SID) is required to take course exams.
• Private Flood Insurance Alternatives (e.g., NCIP Private Flood)minorOthersDuring NFIP shutdown periods due to stalled reauthorization, insurance agents have turned to private flood insurance alternatives like NCIP Private Flood to ensure continued coverage and transaction stability for clients.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Travelers: Large national P&C insurer participating in the WYO program with strong commercial flood capabilities. Comparable as an established multi-line carrier distributing federal and private flood products.
• Zurich Insurance Group: Global multi-line P&C insurer with U.S. commercial property and specialty flood capabilities, including excess flood placements above NFIP limits. Comparable as a large incumbent competing for higher-value flood risk.
• Allstate: Major national P&C insurer that participates in the NFIP Write Your Own program and also writes its own private flood product. Comparable as a large multi-line carrier competing in flood distribution and risk-bearing.
• Liberty Mutual Insurance: Major diversified P&C insurer participating in the NFIP WYO program and offering commercial flood solutions. Comparable as a broad-line carrier overlapping with NFIP on residential and commercial flood distribution.
• Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company: Major mutual P&C insurer that is a WYO participant with a sizable agency footprint for flood distribution. Comparable as a broad-line carrier channeling NFIP and competing for flood risk.
• State Farm: Largest U.S. personal lines P&C insurer and WYO participant selling NFIP policies through its agency force. Comparable as a national household-name carrier with parallel flood distribution and pricing capabilities.
• Assurant: Specialty P&C insurer with significant lender-placed and catastrophe-exposed portfolios. Comparable as a broad incumbent active in residential flood placement and lender-related distribution.

Direct peers

• Neptune Flood: Private flood-only insurance carrier using proprietary pricing technology to write residential and commercial flood risk. Most direct competitor to NFIP, offering an alternative channel for agents and homeowners priced outside the federal program.
• Citizens Property Insurance Corporation: State-backed insurer of last resort in Florida providing property coverage in high-risk coastal areas where private carriers withdraw. Structurally analogous to NFIP as a government-backed property insurance backstop for residual high-risk exposure.

Others

• Aon: Global insurance broker that places significant flood and catastrophe risk with NFIP and private carriers. Comparable as the distribution and advisory layer that routes business between NFIP, WYO carriers, and private flood markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/fema
• YouTubeyoutube.com/fema
• Facebookfacebook.com/FEMA
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-flood-insurance-program-fema
• Instagraminstagram.com/fema

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Flood Insurance Program