H.R. 3456

Flood Insurance Mitigation and Policyholder Protection Act of 2015

This bill amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to require that any report of an on-site inspection of a property by a claims adjustor or engineer for the purpose of assessing any claim for losses covered by a flood insurance policy under such Act:

• may not be transmitted to any other person, employer, agency, or entity, before it is transmitted to the insured;
• may not include alterations by, or at the request of, anyone other than such preparer and shall include the preparer's certification that it does not contain any such alterations; and
• shall be transmitted in a manner that gives reasonable assurance that it was transmitted directly to the insured by the preparer.

A claimant is authorized, in the case of a denial by FEMA or an insurance company of a claim for losses that is appealed to FEMA, to institute an action on such claim against FEMA or such insurance company in U.S. district court within one year after the date of a final determination upon appeal denying such claim.

FEMA must, within 60 days after enactment of this Act, issue guidelines required under the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014 for alternative mitigation methods, other than building elevation, to reduce flood risk to residential buildings that cannot be elevated due to their structural characteristics.