Selectmen undecided on reimbursement for loss of flood discount
Stonington — Two of the three members of the Board of Selectman said this week they cannot yet say if they would approve a proposal to reimburse property owners who lost their flood insurance discounts.
At last week’s Board of Selectmen’s meeting, resident Tom Norris told the board that the town should reimburse residents who lost the 5 percent discount on their flood insurance premiums because it was clearly the fault of the town and FEMA.
Another resident has emailed First Selectman George Crouse warning that if the town does not reimburse property owners, the town could face a class action lawsuit.
Crouse and Selectman Mike Spellman said this week that they cannot yet say if they would approve a reimbursement because they still are looking into the issue.
To reimburse residents, the selectmen would have to make a recommendation to the Board of Finance, which would have to approve the plan.
Selectman Rob Simmons said he thinks the town is at fault for the loss of the discount and attempts should be made to make the residents whole.
“If the town has failed and it resulted in property owners losing their discount, we have to look at some form of property tax rebate or some other form of making them whole,” he said.
Spellman said he does not yet have all the information he needs to form an opinion on reimbursement.
He added the town has to determine “the root cause” so the problem does not occur again. In addition, he said the town should consider modeling its flood discount plan after the one in the borough, where residents get a 10 percent discount.
Crouse said the town is working diligently to address the deficiencies in a FEMA audit that led to the loss of the discount. He said doing so may not result in an “instant fix” but one that should be done before October.
Until the town corrects the deficiencies, property owners whose policies come up for renewal will not receive the discount.
Crouse said he could not comment on reimbursement as the town attorney is still addressing the legal issues involved in the situation.
He also pointed out that private flood insurance can offer property owners discounts far greater than that of the federal flood insurance program.
j.wojtas@theday.com
Twitter: @joewojtas
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