FIRM Maps

Proposed Flood Insurance Rate Maps

The Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) for the Daytona Beach area were originally created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 1973 and last updated in 2002. Property owners are encouraged to review the preliminary maps as flood designations may have changed.

Learn Your Zone

If you are a homeowner and believe your property is not located in a designated 100-year floodplain [also known as a 1-percent-annual-chance floodplain, or Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)], as shown on the effective Flood Insurance Rate Map or Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map for your community and you would like the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make an official determination regarding the location of your property relative to the SFHA, request:

Firm Maps

Insurance Changes

During this process residents and business owners may find that their current flood zone has changed. In some cases a property may be mapped into a lower-risk zone. For others, a property's zone may change from a moderate or low-risk area to a high-risk area, making flood insurance mandatory by most lenders.

High Impact Areas

The most significant changes to the 2014 FEMA Flood Insurance rate maps are in the area generally bordered by Beville Road, Mason Avenue, US 1 and Nova Road, which runs parallel to the Nova Canal. If a property is mapped into a higher risk zone, or if the Base Flood Elevation (BFE) changes, flood insurance premium could significantly increase.
 The most significant changes to the 2017 FEMA Flood Insurance rate maps are in areas adjacent to the Halifax River. The Base Flood Elevations in these areas decreased from 1 foot to 2 feet.

Insurance Options

Property owners need to understand their options following changes to their community's FIRM. One of their options might be "grandfathering," which is a National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) rule that was created in order to recognize property owners who carried a policy before the maps became effective or built to the correct standards relative to the flood map in effect at the time of construction. This rule, along with other NFIP rules, can result in significant cost savings to policyholders compared to a potentially higher premium rate that results from a flood map revision.

How to Interpret the FEMA FIRM Rate Maps

Whatever the area shown on a FEMA FIRM map, it may include several, or only a few types of floodplain zones, each designated by a letter or a combination of a letters and numbers.