Savings coming for Horry County flood insurance holders

Because of increased county flood standards, residents of Horry County who pay for flood insurance are going to have more money left in their pockets.

Lauren Harrelson, county flood plain manager, told the Horry County Council Tuesday night that a new CRS rating will give residents who pay for flood insurance a 25% savings in their rates starting in April 2024.

The CRS or Community Rating Service is a voluntary program of the National Flood Insurance Program Rating System. Cities and counties can enroll in the program and show they are going above and beyond in protecting their citizens from damaging floods. The end goals are to protect their area and to lower the flood insurance costs of its residents.

The numbered ranking indicates the amount of savings for flood insurance policy holders. The lower the number means the more money that is saved.

Harrelson said the county first enrolled in the CRS program in 2010 and received a rating of 9, which translated to a savings of 5%. New flood initiatives were put in place in the county and in 2017 the rating dropped to a 7 and a savings of 15%.

She said the county stepped up its game the last five years and in the latest CRS ranking which came out in 2022 the number dropped to a 5 which means flood insurance policy owners will end up paying only 75% of what they have been charged in recent years.

"This will mean a $1.5 million savings a year," Harrelson said. "Those numbers may be even higher because the savings will now apply to anyone with flood insurance and not just those in special flood zones like in the past."

Horry County assistant administrator Randy Webster said hitting the latest ranking is a major milestone for the county, attributing the new level to work carried out by all departments in the county government.

"This is a big deal," Webster said. "It's a goal we've had for many years."

In other actions, the council kicked the impact fees ordinance back to its I & R Committee for further study. The ordinance was up for second reading Tuesday night.