FEMA Flood Map Mistake Could Cost Broward Homeowners Thousands
MIRAMAR (CBS4) - Thousands of Broward county homeowners will be forced to pay for flood insurance they don't need.
It's a mistake FEMA owned up to Thursday admitting they made a big error.
It all has to do with new proposed flood maps that brought relief for many. The maps were set to be approved by the end of the year but now it looks like the changes are much further off.
The stall will affect homeowners like Keith Laplant. As he stood outside his Miramar home Thursday watching the rain move into the street drain he questioned why he's forced to pay for flood insurance.
"I've been paying it for 10 years that I've lived in this house and I felt I never should have paid it." Laplant said.
Thousands of Broward residents feel that way and for the first time in a decade FEMA agreed with Laplant. New flood maps proposed show he's no longer in a flood zone. "I didn't know that," he responded when we told him the news.
It means in roughly six months Laplant is expected to be off the hook for flood insurance when the new maps are adopted. In fact his whole neighborhood is out of the flood zone. It was great news until something happened this Spring that stopped everything. A mistake made by FEMA in March advertising the new maps.
Elissa Taylor, who oversees unincorporated Broward County's flood plain, explained "The addresses published in the Florida Register, some of them were not correct."
Wrong addresses on public notices requires FEMA to start all over. A process that a minimum takes nine months, but likely will last longer. It means Laplant will likely pay next year's flood insurance bill even though FEMA is proposing he shouldn't have to.
Laplant feels cheated.
"Your poor paper processing and computer skills that put a wrong address in there is not my problem. It's not my fault. And I shouldn't have to pay the extra dues."
Taylor showed us Laplant is not alone. She showed us a series of maps provided by consultants to FEMA. The PDF files are shaded in green, gray and red.
"The red is areas that have a decreased risk under the proposed maps." On many sections of the county red covers 60 to 80 of the map. Every home in red was expecting a decrease in risk or dropping flood risk all together. They are thousands of homeowners who were off the hook, now back on. FEMA said it could now be a year or longer before these new maps are adopted.
Laplant believes that is unacceptable.
"I hope everyone starts writing letters or calling FEMA asking for their money back and if it's gets overwhelming maybe they'll do the right thing," he said.
There is at least one group that stands to benefit from the delay and that is those who were expecting rate increases. They will get a year reprieve. If you wonder where you stand in all of this, whether you are going to be able to opt out of mandatory coverage or seeing your risk, CLICK HERE.
