Florida legislators are expected to consider a proposal requiring property sellers to inform buyers whether their property has ever suffered from flooding. The respective bills were submitted for the March session after two hurricanes hit the state last year.
In February, Senator Jennifer Bradley submitted a bill (SB 484) that stipulates a series of requirements to information disclosure. Chair Susan Valdes submitted a similar document (HB 325) in January.
According to Bradley’s bill, sellers will have to disclose information not only about property flooding but also about its location in a designated flooding risk area and report whether the sellers have received federal assistance in connection with flooding damage and whether flooding insurance claims have been filed.
This proposal was drafted after Hurricane Ian had caused considerable flooding damage to the state in September. The storm hit the coast in the southwest part of Florida and destroyed properties located on the coast of Volusia County, including those in Orlando.
State-wide studies show that Hurricane Ian can become the second greatest natural disaster in the USA with forecasted insured damages of up to $60 billion, according to Insurance Information Institute.
Hurricane Nicole that hit the state in November added another $1.5 billion worth of damages.