Montana state auditor urges flood, wildfire insurance # Montana state auditor urges flood, wildfire insurance by Phil Howard Tue, September 8, 2026 at 5:30 PM Updated Tue, September 8, 2026 at 6:10 PM Photo: NBC Montana MISSOULA, Mont.
nbcmontana.com · September 8, 2026
Montana state auditor urges flood, wildfire insurance
# Montana state auditor urges flood, wildfire insurance
by Phil Howard
Tue, September 8, 2026 at 5:30 PM
Updated Tue, September 8, 2026 at 6:10 PM
Photo: NBC Montana
MISSOULA, Mont. — Montana State Auditor James Brown is urging homeowners to review their insurance coverage as flooding and wildfire threats continue across the state.
Brown said flooding is a year-round concern in Montana, especially for homes near rivers and creeks or in areas with drainage problems. He urges residents to plan ahead because flood insurance does not take effect immediately.
“Most people get their coverage through the FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program, there is private coverage that’s available, but the lesson there is it takes about 30 days to get coverage for flood insurance so you have to pre-plan, plan ahead, you can’t just buy it at the last minute,” Brown said.
Brown said flooding is the leading insurance peril nationwide, and FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program is the primary way Montanans can obtain flood coverage.
He is also reminding homeowners to make sure their policies provide adequate wildfire coverage during fire season.
Brown said wildfire coverage is becoming less common in standard homeowners' insurance policies and increasingly expensive.
He said insurers could raise rates in 2028, citing large fires burning in Beaverhead County.
“These fires are a reminder of a couple things, one is that people need to be proactive in protecting their property against wildfire loss that includes taking measures to harden their home, but the second thing is to make sure that their homeowners insurance coverage is adequate to cover the replacement cost of the house,” Brown said.
Brown said lower-cost policies may provide less coverage or carry higher deductibles, meaning homeowners could be responsible for the first several thousand dollars in losses before insurance coverage begins.