Fact Sheet: 'Substantial Damage' – What Does It Mean?
For communities that participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), substantial damage determinations are required by local floodplain-management ordinances. These rules must be in place for residents of a community to purchase flood insurance through the NFIP.
Substantial damage applies to a structure in a Special
For example, if a structure's market value before the damage was
If a building in a floodplain is determined by the local official to be substantially damaged, it must be brought into compliance with local floodplain management regulations.
Owners may:
* Elevate their structures, or change them in some other way to comply with those local floodplain regulations and avoid future losses;
* Relocate or demolish the structure; or,
* Flood proof a non-residential, or historical structure.
All property owners should check with local building officials to determine which permits for repairs are required before beginning the work. Depending on local codes and ordinances, there can be serious consequences for not complying with the permitting process.
Property owners who have a flood insurance policy through the NFIP and a substantially damaged building (from flooding) in a SFHA may be able to use additional funds - known as Increased Cost of Compliance (ICC) - from their flood insurance policy (up to
For more information regarding substantial damage and other floodplain related issues, contact your local floodplain administrator, the National Flood Insurance Program at (800-427-4661) or call 711 (TTY and other services available) and 866-337-4262 for VRS. You can also email [email protected] to request information in a language other than English. Information also is available at www.fema.gov/ and www.floodsmart.gov.
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