I want to thank everyone for their input so far. To get some clarity from the person I am working for, I spoke with them yesterday and I asked them what their endgame was for having me do this. The person I am working for told me that their flood insurance automatically goes up 25% every year when the policy renews. They told me that they need an elevation for the building established in order to have this automatic rate increases stopped. If?ÿ I can't get a bfe established through the flood plain manager, can section E of the certificate be filled out and be sufficient for what they are looking for.
Yes, I think so. ?ÿI have done these in zone A with no BFE for locals to address that very same sort of insurance premium increase. ?ÿThe local insurance agent and flood insurance expert tells me that by simply having an elevation certificate completed for the structure even though no BFE is listed actually allows him to check off a certain box on the insurance side to help deal with the premium increases. ?ÿMaybe the insurance folks have some sort of secret magic BFE table?
Here are a couple of examples:
1. The client was informed by his bank that he needed to pay $700 dollars a month for flood insurance. The new Zone A maps show his house that's on a small hill above a stream to be in the zone while the hay meadow across the stream and clearly lower than the house is out of the flood plain----on the map. I hired an engineer, one the client wanted to use, he laid out cross-sections (in my opinion too long as we cross-sectioned over a 1/4 mile of the low side). His finished floor is 13' above the BFE, even all his outbuildings are well out. The $5000 price tag was cheap.?ÿ
2. A young family guy bought a nice place near a step across stream with 2 miles of drainage. In the field you could tell the Zone A as usual was bogus. He was 4-5' visually higher than the opposite side of the stream and that area was shown outside the Zone. A typical Zone A mess. He was paying $600/month and we did the same thing, hired an engineer; this time one I picked. He laid out cross-sections, calculated a BFE and the lag on his house is 4' above the BFE. No basement. Flood insurance went away. Cost $3500.?ÿ
This is repeated over and over. I've done close to a dozen of these since the Zone A maps came out, none of them have been in the flood zone.?ÿ
They ask and expect a report how the BFE is generated, the engineer supplies the report with the cross sections, calculations, ect.?ÿ
Now consider other ways to get the BFE, I was at a seminar that showed how to get a BFE from Quad Sheet contour maps, if you do such a thing the BFE is on you. Possibly you can get one from the flood plain manager, then hopefully the number is the managers responsibility. What happens if the house floods, can the homeowner or lender come back to you and say; "hey you said this house was out of the 100 year flood, we just had a 50 year flood and it's under water". Are you then liable??ÿ
Flood calculations are a math exercise, drainage areas, CFS volumes, there is a valid number for a BFE based on that math. Use an engineer to get that number, they are licensed to do it. FEMA will accept it.
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If I recall a recent webinar correctly, beginning as soon as 2021 the insurance industry will (may) no longer be relying on elevation certificates for insurance premium decisions. ?ÿLocal building and zoning compliance authorities will. ?ÿInsurance folks will not.
The message was (I think, as best I can recall) that historically insurance decisions have been made at the edge of the flood zone on a map. ?ÿIs the property or structure ??in or out.? ?ÿThis has not been a fair or mathematically realistic basis for insurance risk decisions, is essentially what was said as best I recall.
Again, I want to thank everyone for their input on this topic. I wanted to share a little more information about the home I am doing this for. This is a home that was involved in a flood in 1996 that the water rose to the level of the first floor. The basement was completely submerged. The owner knows that this home can't be moved out of the flood zone and wants to carry the insurance but as I previously stated needs to know the elevations for the home for insurance purposes.?ÿ?ÿ
