RISE Announces Winners of $1.5 Million Flood Insurance of the Future Challenge

PR Newswire

Five businesses will each receive up to $300,000 to pilot and commercialize novel solutions that reduce flood insurance premiums and payouts by 50%

NORFOLK, Va., March 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- RISE today announced five winning small businesses in its $1.5 million Flood Insurance of the Future Challenge, a competition designed to source innovative solutions that reduce flood-related insurance premiums and payouts by 50%.

Five businesses will pilot and commercialize novel solutions that reduce flood insurance premiums and payouts by 50%

Each winner will receive up to $300,000 in funding to test and advance next-generation products in Hampton Roads, Virginia, until the end of 2023. Winners also get access to other resources in the RISE Innovation Hub and Testbed, such as a customized business accelerator through 757 Collab, co-working office and testing space, real-world pilot sites, and introductions to regional municipalities and stakeholders.

"Flood insurance is a critical tool for building economically and environmentally resilient communities, but the majority of homeowners, renters and businesses are uninsured or underinsured," said RISE Executive Director, Dr. Paul Robinson. "These winning ideas represent innovative ways to maintain financial security and stability, and improve access and affordability."

"Protecting our coastal communities is paramount to protecting our growing economy," said Bryan Horn, director of Virginia's Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). "These five projects will offer new and innovative pathways for our vulnerable coastal communities to protect their financial stability while becoming more resilient."

The winning projects will join more than 30 RISE-funded pilots from seven previous Challenges, including sensors that gather essential stormwater system capacity data, applications to re-route drivers in real time using Waze to avoid flooded roads, and the nation's first home raising academy.

Established in 2017 through support from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and DHCD, RISE has deployed more than $7 million in financial assistance and services to entrepreneurs in the growing coastal resilience sector. RISE recently extended its successful model to the rural Middle Peninsula region of Virginia to address problems distinct from those encountered by coastal cities, and will soon launch a Challenge focused on the needs of riverine and mountain communities in western Virginia.

Meet the Winners:

National Flood Experts will pilot a scalable platform that will allow municipalities' floodplain managers and residents to more easily assess costs under FEMA's new Risk Rating 2.0.

Plover Parametric will structure event-driven insurance products that benefit residents, businesses and municipalities.

reThought Insurance will further advance its flood risk assessment and pricing capabilities for properties in the U.S, to bring flood coverage to more property owners.

Ric will pilot a community-based parametric insurance model of its $14/month, zero-deductible policy, which offers a $10,000 payout within 48 hours based on a triggering event.

True Flood Risk will extend its risk management platform capabilities to produce current and future damage estimates and support insurance applications.

To learn more, please visit www.riseresilience.org/winners.

About RISE

RISE finds, funds and scales innovative solutions for coastal communities struggling with flooding and other climate-related challenges in the living lab of coastal Virginia. Since 2018, we have deployed over $7 million to more than 35 businesses creating cutting-edge products and services, and established the only ecosystem for the growing coastal resilience sector.

CONTACT: Betsy Hnath, betsyhnath@riseresilience.org