Flood zones, flood insurance and FEMA help, in plain English

Orange County flood history

Florida · From FEMA's flood insurance and disaster data · Updated 2026-10-08

2,271NFIP flood claims since 1978
$73.1 millionPaid on those claims
$74,986Average paid claimlast 10 years
3.3%Homes with NFIP flood insurance
$640Typical yearly NFIP costsingle-family home
4Flood disaster declarationssince 2000

FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) data lists 2,271 flood insurance claims in Orange County, Florida since 1978. The NFIP paid $73.1 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 2022, with 909, mostly from Hurricane Ian.

In the last ten years (2017–2026) there were 1,308 claims, and the average paid claim was $74,986.

43% of the claims with a recorded flood zone came from buildings outside FEMA's high-risk zones (rated zones B, C and X).

About 3.3% of homes in Orange County, Florida had an NFIP flood policy in FEMA's latest count (13,113 of 397,341 residential buildings). In the high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), it was 44% (4,067 of 9,209).

Since 2000, FEMA has made 4 flood-related disaster declarations covering Orange County, Florida. The most recent was DR-4834-FL (Hurricane Milton), declared October 11, 2024.

NFIP claims by year

NFIP flood claims per year in Orange County, Florida02505007501k1978: 4 claims, $1,613 paid1979: 10 claims, $26,058 paid1980: 5 claims, $883 paid19801981: 4 claims, $3,432 paid1982: 12 claims, $7,010 paid1983: 6 claims, $6,987 paid1984: 13 claims, $62,578 paid1985: 4 claims, $48,418 paid1986: 5 claims, $22,812 paid1987: 7 claims, $7,098 paid1988: 7 claims, $818 paid1989: 3 claims, $4,867 paid1990: 3 claims, $42,256 paid19901991: 13 claims, $8,770 paid1992: 16 claims, $24,248 paid1993: 5 claims, $15,211 paid1994: 47 claims, $236,578 paid1995: 39 claims, $228,767 paid1996: 18 claims, $27,088 paid1997: 21 claims, $33,774 paid1998: 19 claims, $68,019 paid1999: 12 claims, $36,386 paid2000: 10 claims, $13,070 paid20002001: 19 claims, $22,672 paid2002: 26 claims, $78,634 paid2003: 21 claims, $55,733 paid2004: 322 claims, $1.8 million paid2005: 14 claims, $127,536 paid2006: 13 claims, $4,935 paid2007: 7 claims, $0 paid2008: 99 claims, $471,193 paid2009: 32 claims, $96,672 paid2010: 19 claims, $77,536 paid20102011: 13 claims, $3,479 paid2012: 12 claims, $23,288 paid2013: 22 claims, $220,587 paid2014: 25 claims, $37,768 paid2015: 12 claims, $83,844 paid2016: 24 claims, $32,641 paid2017: 219 claims, $3.9 million paid2018: 17 claims, $198,897 paid2019: 13 claims, $36,178 paid2020: 13 claims, $83,826 paid20202021: 9 claims, $28,516 paid2022: 909 claims, $59.7 million paid2023: 8 claims, $136,182 paid2024: 106 claims, $3.9 million paid2025: 11 claims, $607,311 paid2026: 3 claims, $277,048 paid
Claims per year of loss. Hover or tap a bar for details.
Show as a table
YearClaimsPaid
20263$277,048
202511$607,311
2024106$3.9 million
20238$136,182
2022909$59.7 million
20219$28,516
202013$83,826
201913$36,178
201817$198,897
2017219$3.9 million
201624$32,641
201512$83,844
201425$37,768
201322$220,587
201212$23,288
201113$3,479
201019$77,536
200932$96,672
200899$471,193
20077$0
200613$4,935
200514$127,536
2004322$1.8 million
200321$55,733
200226$78,634
200119$22,672
200010$13,070
199912$36,386
199819$68,019
199721$33,774
199618$27,088
199539$228,767
199447$236,578
19935$15,211
199216$24,248
199113$8,770
19903$42,256
19893$4,867
19887$818
19877$7,098
19865$22,812
19854$48,418
198413$62,578
19836$6,987
198212$7,010
19814$3,432
19805$883
197910$26,058
19784$1,613

Named flood events

EventYearClaimsPaid
Hurricane Ian2022872$59.5 million
Hurricane Irma2017201$3.9 million
Hurricane Milton202481$3.5 million
Hurricane Charley200489$715,383
Hurricane Frances200485$552,333
Hurricane Jeanne2004126$520,551
Tropical Storm Fay200892$471,193
Hurricane Wilma20056$81,631

How many homes have flood insurance

FEMA counts 13,113 residential NFIP policies in Orange County, against 397,341 residential buildings (3.3%). Of the 9,209 residential buildings in high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), 4,067 have an NFIP policy (44%). Private flood policies aren't in these counts.

Whether you're required to carry flood insurance depends on your flood zone and your mortgage. See do I need flood insurance?

What flood insurance costs in Orange County

On June 30, 2026, 16,899 NFIP flood insurance policies were in force in Orange County, Florida. For the 11,854 single-family homes among them, the typical (median) yearly cost was about $640; the average was $710.

Rated flood zonePoliciesTypical yearly cost, single-family homeAverage costAverage building coverage
High-risk zones (A and V)5,744$740$800$227,000
Moderate- and low-risk zones (B, C and X)11,155$610$670$237,000

Cost here is what FEMA's data lists as the policy cost: the premium plus the reserve fund assessment, federal policy fee and HFIAA surcharge. It covers single-family homes only (not condos, apartments or businesses), with costs rounded to the nearest $10 and shown only where at least 20 homes back the figure. Your own price depends on your building and the coverage you choose; see how flood insurance is priced. Private flood insurance isn't included.

Flood-related disaster declarations

DeclarationDeclaredEventHelp for individuals
DR-4834-FL Oct 11, 2024 Hurricane Milton Yes
EM-3605-FL Aug 3, 2024 Tropical Storm Debby No
DR-1785-FL Aug 24, 2008 Tropical Storm Fay Yes
EM-3288-FL Aug 21, 2008 Tropical Storm Fay No

Check your own address

County numbers can't tell you about a single building. Look up your property on FEMA's flood map, then read what your flood zone means. More counties: all of Florida.

Where these numbers come from

All figures on this page are calculated from FEMA's public OpenFEMA datasets:

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.