District of Columbia flood insurance and flood history
From FEMA's flood insurance and disaster data · Updated 2026-10-08
FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) data lists 501 flood insurance claims in District of Columbia since 1978. The NFIP paid $5.5 million on them (building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments, in the dollars of the year paid).
The year with the most claims was 2020, with 63.
In the last ten years (2017–2026) there were 216 claims, and the average paid claim was $16,092.
85% of the claims with a recorded flood zone came from buildings outside FEMA's high-risk zones (rated zones B, C and X).
About 1.1% of homes in District of Columbia had an NFIP flood policy in FEMA's latest count (1,443 of 125,848 residential buildings).
Since 2000, FEMA has made 1 flood-related disaster declaration covering parts of District of Columbia. The most recent was DR-1389-DC (Severe Storms, Flooding and Mudslides), declared August 16, 2001.
Flood insurance claims in District of Columbia by year
Show as a table
| Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 9 | $10,718 |
| 2025 | 5 | $38,557 |
| 2024 | 8 | $3,224 |
| 2023 | 12 | $723,536 |
| 2022 | 10 | $26,357 |
| 2021 | 18 | $109,293 |
| 2020 | 63 | $572,389 |
| 2019 | 23 | $36,997 |
| 2018 | 41 | $202,381 |
| 2017 | 27 | $304,200 |
| 2016 | 14 | $14,793 |
| 2015 | 17 | $9,704 |
| 2014 | 21 | $25,187 |
| 2013 | 13 | $26,078 |
| 2012 | 19 | $95,004 |
| 2011 | 27 | $1.6 million |
| 2010 | 25 | $36,711 |
| 2009 | 9 | $8,216 |
| 2008 | 13 | $60,508 |
| 2006 | 12 | $539,045 |
| 2005 | 2 | $1,205 |
| 2004 | 3 | $6,733 |
| 2003 | 25 | $309,075 |
| 2001 | 8 | $1,156 |
| 2000 | 1 | $0 |
| 1999 | 1 | $4,788 |
| 1998 | 3 | $750 |
| 1997 | 1 | $0 |
| 1996 | 19 | $482,435 |
| 1993 | 2 | $17,662 |
| 1987 | 1 | $0 |
| 1986 | 1 | $0 |
| 1985 | 6 | $72,851 |
| 1984 | 3 | $10,804 |
| 1983 | 6 | $4,670 |
| 1981 | 2 | $757 |
| 1980 | 11 | $26,337 |
| 1979 | 13 | $86,952 |
| 1978 | 7 | $33,467 |
Biggest flood events by NFIP payments
The flood events FEMA's claims data names most often for District of Columbia, ranked by what the NFIP paid. FEMA names events in its claims records; claims without an event name aren't included here.
| Event | Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flooding | 1996 | 10 | $373,000 |
| Hurricane Irene | 2011 | 7 | $24,921 |
| Hurricane Sandy | 2012 | 6 | $17,118 |
| Hurricane Ida | 2021 | 1 | $8,866 |
| Tropical Storm Ophelia | 2023 | 3 | $7,076 |
| Tropical Storm Bill | 2015 | 1 | $0 |
Flood history by county
Every District of Columbia county in FEMA's data, sorted by number of NFIP claims since 1978. "Insured" is the share of homes with an NFIP policy.
| County | Claims | Paid | Insured | Flood declarations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 501 | $5.5 million | 1.1% | 1 |
Flood-related FEMA disaster declarations in District of Columbia
Declarations since 2000 that FEMA lists as involving flooding. "Help for individuals" means FEMA's Individual Assistance was approved for at least part of the area.
| Declaration | Declared | Event | Help for individuals |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR-1389-DC | Aug 16, 2001 | Severe Storms, Flooding and Mudslides | Yes |
What to do with this
A county's history doesn't tell you your own building's risk. To see your property's flood zone, use FEMA's flood map lookup. To weigh coverage, start with do I need flood insurance? and what flood insurance costs.
Where these numbers come from
All figures on this page are calculated from FEMA's public OpenFEMA datasets:
- NFIP Redacted Claims (v3) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP claims since 1978, downloaded 2026-10-08. Dollar amounts are what the NFIP paid, not adjusted for inflation. Claims filed under private flood insurance aren't included.
- NFIP Residential Penetration Rates (v1) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP residential policy contracts in force (as of August 3, 2026) divided by FEMA's count of residential buildings from the National Structure Inventory. FEMA notes that inventory is incomplete in some counties, which can inflate the rate. Private flood policies aren't counted.
- Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): disaster declarations, downloaded 2026-10-08. We count a declaration as flood-related when FEMA lists flooding (or a dam or levee break) as its incident type or a designated incident type, or the declaration's title mentions flooding.
FEMA's redacted claims data doesn't identify properties, and FEMA notes that some records lack a county or flood zone. See how we use the data.