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Flood insurance cost · Bristol County, MA

Flood insurance cost in Bristol County, Massachusetts

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 2,495 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Bristol County, MassachusettsPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,342a year

Half of insured homes paid between $908 and $2,017. That is 5% less than the Massachusetts median ($1,407). The most common flood zone for insured homes here is zone AE (50%).

$0$908 · $1,342 · $2,017$2,521
+6.9% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,255)
2,495home policies in force
$1,714average cost (mean)
82%of insured homes in high-risk zones (A, V)
$250,000median building coverage

This is what policyholders paid, not a quote. Two neighbors can pay very different prices: NFIP prices depend on the building (elevation, foundation, number of floors, replacement cost), the coverage and deductible chosen and the distance to water (FEMA FloodSmart: premium factors). For a price for your building, ask an insurance agent. Private flood insurance is not included in these figures.

Cost by flood zone in Bristol County

The flood zone on FEMA's map is one of the main price factors. Median and middle half of what insured homes paid, by the zone used to rate the policy.

Flood zoneMedianMiddle half (25th–75th percentile)AveragePoliciesvs last year
Zone VE / V
High risk, coastal		$2,240$1,430–$3,459$2,625701 (28%)+5.2%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,322$954–$1,773$1,5371,239 (50%)+4.9%
Zone A
High risk		$1,156$821–$1,540$1,20199 (4%)+6.2%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$828$578–$1,197$905456 (18%)+1.0%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): AO, AH, A99/AR, D. Shares are of all insured homes; a few policies have no rated zone. "vs last year" compares medians with policies in force a year earlier.

Cost by type of building

All NFIP policies in force in Bristol County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home2,212$1,377$1,766
2–4 unit building182$1,278$1,564
Manufactured (mobile) home12$1,390$1,394
Condo or apartment unit89$675$781
Whole residential building (5+ units or condo association)
One policy covers the whole building, so the cost is much higher than for a single home.		85$2,577$4,145
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		225$3,146$4,524
2,805NFIP policies in force, any building
3,244insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
57%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Bristol County

Policies in force on August 31, 2026 compared with a year earlier. Nationwide, practically all policies in both years carry FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 occupancy codes, so both years use the same pricing system. The policies are not the same: some were new, some lapsed.

Aug 31, 2025Aug 31, 2026Change
Home policies in force2,5412,495−1.8%
Median annual cost$1,255$1,342+6.9%
Average annual cost$1,609$1,714+6.5%
All policies in force (any building)2,8392,805−1.2%

How many homes have flood insurance?

1.9%of all homes in Bristol County have an NFIP policy
55.6%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
133,589residential buildings counted by FEMA
3,805of them in high-risk zones

FEMA NFIP Residential Penetration Rates, data as of August 3, 2026: residential contracts in force divided by residential structures.

Flood claims history

Since 1978, NFIP policyholders in Bristol County, Massachusetts have filed 1,564 flood claims. 1,075 received a payment, for a total of $13.8 million (an average of $12,809 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1991 (491 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

02004006008001978: 138 claims, 99 paid, $262,254 in total19781979: 12 claims19801982: 10 claims1983: 21 claims, 15 paid, $48,316 in total1984: 16 claims1985: 52 claims, 25 paid, $36,697 in total1987: 51 claims, 30 paid, $151,265 in total19901991: 491 claims, 383 paid, $5,215,644 in total19911992: 42 claims, 25 paid, $498,149 in total1996: 10 claims1997: 33 claims, 24 paid, $101,406 in total1998: 68 claims, 38 paid, $740,288 in total20002001: 34 claims, 20 paid, $98,521 in total2005: 62 claims, 51 paid, $696,611 in total2006: 21 claims, 17 paid, $145,863 in total2007: 11 claims2010: 213 claims, 166 paid, $2,548,356 in total201020102011: 17 claims2012: 61 claims, 42 paid, $599,785 in total2018: 13 claims20202021: 15 claims, 12 paid, $606,863 in total2022: 13 claims2023: 49 claims, 34 paid, $992,221 in total2024: 10 claims
Flood claims per year of loss, 1978–2026. Years with fewer than 10 claims are left blank. Hover a bar for details.
All years with at least 10 claims (24)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202410<10––
20234934$992,221$29,183
202213<10––
20211512$606,863$50,572
201813<10––
20126142$599,785$14,281
201117<10––
2010213166$2,548,356$15,352
200711<10––
20062117$145,863$8,580
20056251$696,611$13,659
20013420$98,521$4,926
19986838$740,288$19,481
19973324$101,406$4,225
199610<10––
19924225$498,149$19,926
1991491383$5,215,644$13,618
19875130$151,265$5,042
19855225$36,697$1,468
198416<10––
19832115$48,316$3,221
198210<10––
197912<10––
197813899$262,254$2,649

From 2016 to 2026: 100 claims (counting only years with at least 10). 2026 is a partial year. Claims are counted where the insured property is; they include buildings and contents, homes and businesses.

ZIP codes in Bristol County

ZIP codes with at least 300 NFIP home policies in force have their own page.

Main NFIP communities in the county

Fairhaven (526 home policies) · Dartmouth (341 home policies) · Swansea (276 home policies) · Westport (210 home policies) · New Bedford (190 home policies) · Attleboro (160 home policies)