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Allegheny County, PA flood insurance claims history

4,832 claims under the National Flood Insurance Program have been filed for flood losses in Allegheny County since 1978, and FEMA has paid out $81.6M on them. The worst year was 2004 with 1,221 claims. Allegheny County ranks #4 of 67 in Pennsylvania by claim count.

At a glance

  • 34% of claims came from buildings outside FEMA’s high-risk flood zones (B, C or X), where lenders usually do not require flood insurance.
  • 22% of all claims trace to a single event — Tropical Storm Ivan (2004), which paid $34.6M here.
  • Flood claims were filed in 10 of the last 10 years — flooding here is a regular event, not a once-in-a-generation one.
  • More flood claims than 95% of the 67 Pennsylvania counties with any claims on file — and more than all 4 of its neighbors.
  • ZIP 15209 has the most claims in the county (370, 8%). Check your ZIP →
NFIP claims
4,832
1978–2026
Total paid
$81.6M
nominal dollars, not inflation-adjusted
Claims paid
79%
3,841 received a payment
Average payout
$21K
per paid claim
Last 10 years
824
claims 2017 – 2026
Most recent loss
2026-09-03
data as of 2026-09-08

Look up your ZIP code

Pick your ZIP code to see how many insured buildings there filed flood claims, in which years, and how much was paid — and which named floods those claims came from, which a county-wide list cannot tell you. Narrow by year or flood zone too. Everything runs in your browser — nothing you pick is sent anywhere. Have a street address? Run the printable flood check for it →

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Flood claims by year

Peak: 1,221 claims in 2004

Claims by year of loss, 1978–2026. Spikes line up with named storms and major rain events; quiet years still see claims from local flash flooding.

Biggest flood events in Allegheny County

Flood event (FEMA name)ClaimsPaidAvg / claimYear
Tropical Storm Ivan1,082$34.6M$32K2004
Flooding (FEMA general label)426$6.1M$14K1996
Flooding (FEMA general label)102$901K$9K1986
Hurricane Ida74$791K$11K2021
Flooding (FEMA general label)68$607K$9K1985
Flooding (FEMA general label)21$47K$2K1984
Flooding (FEMA general label)6$8K$1K1987
Hurricane Sandy5$4K$7282012
Not a named storm5$36K$7K1979
March 2010 Nor'easter3$28K$9K2010
Tropical Storm Bill2$1K$5802015
Tropical Storm Allison2$250K$125K2001

37% of claims here fall under these 12 entries. “FEMA general label” groups many separate floods under one name; the rest of the claims have no event name.

Flood zones in Allegheny County: which ones the claims came from

Allegheny County is not in one flood zone. FEMA draws zones parcel by parcel, so one street can be Zone AE and the next Zone X — there is no single zone for a whole county. What the claim record can tell you is which zones buildings were actually rated in when they flooded, and what each zone has cost here.

High-risk A zones: 2,875 (59%)Coastal high-risk V zones: 4 (0%)Moderate / low-risk zones (B, C, X): 1,503 (31%)Zone not recorded: 450 (9%)

The most common zone on Allegheny County claims is Zone AE — 1,696 of 4,382 claims with a zone on file (39%). 66% were in a high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area, where a federally backed mortgage makes flood insurance mandatory. Open any zone below for what it means and whether it requires insurance.

Flood zone at ratingClaimsSharePaidAvg / claim
Zone AE · high risk, insurance required1,69639%$39.3M$23K
Zone X · moderate / low risk95322%$18.6M$20K
Zone A1–A30 · high risk, insurance required66615%$9.9M$15K
Zone A · high risk, insurance required51012%$5.1M$10K
Zone B · moderate / low risk2987%$4.0M$13K
Zone C · moderate / low risk2526%$3.3M$13K
Zone V · high risk, insurance required40%$139$35
Zone AO · high risk, insurance required30%$360K$120K

The zone is the one used to rate the policy when the claim was paid, not today’s map — FEMA remaps areas, so a building rated AE in 1995 may sit in a different zone now. AHB and AOB are older AH / AO variants; A1–A30 and V1–V30 are numbered zones from pre-2000 maps. 450 Allegheny County claims have no zone recorded and are left out of the shares above. Not sure what the letters mean? Flood zones explained →

What caused the flooding

Cause of damage (as coded by FEMA)ClaimsShare
Stream, river or lake overflow1,89439%
Accumulation of rainfall or snowmelt1,84638%
Tidal water overflow (storm surge)56512%
Other causes46410%
Not recorded501%
Earth movement or landslide90%

Flood claims by ZIP code in Allegheny County

116 ZIP codes in Allegheny County have at least one NFIP claim. ZIP codes can cross county lines; this table counts only claims FEMA assigned to Allegheny County.

15209370$5.2M8%292024
15223358$7.3M7%242024
15017227$6.4M5%182024
15116197$2.5M4%222024
15237170$1.5M4%322024
15145169$2.1M3%222026
15071135$3.6M3%172024
15101129$2.5M3%262024
15215126$2.2M3%192019
15106117$4.3M2%172026
15084113$1.5M2%152024
15236109$2.3M2%272024
15207106$1.3M2%232026
15018105$843K2%172025
15234103$976K2%262021
1513697$1.9M2%202024
1514395$653K2%182026
1514789$2.0M2%162021
1510284$1.1M2%222026
1523883$1.3M2%172021
1503782$866K2%242026
1502576$681K2%232018
1514070$644K1%112026
1510869$2.2M1%212024
1508861$702K1%102009
1521258$1.2M1%192024
1520557$2.2M1%162025
1513257$393K1%132026
1523556$486K1%252026
1522255$1.4M1%152024
1524148$1.1M1%132021
1520247$845K1%202024
1523946$2.6M1%162025
1514646$1.3M1%222026
1513943$649K1%172021
1513542$1.6M1%152018
1521042$420K1%182018
1522039$275K1%182021
1522739$305K1%152024
1521336$385K1%122021
1500335$218K1%102024
1503034$92K1%102018
1506433$1.7M1%102024
1503129$472K1%102024
1522128$38K1%122019
1504427$524K1%92025
1513726$121K1%182026
1512625$166K1%82024
1507625$99K1%132016
1522525$71K1%82019
1502423$116K0%152024
1512222$176K0%102019
1512921$219K0%112018
1513121$107K0%102026
1522921$119K0%82007
1521920$320K0%82007
1506817$51K0%102025
1506516$115K0%52015
1505615$25K0%42019
1522614$721K0%102025
1520314$324K0%72009
1520113$84K0%112021
1522813$97K0%112019
1514812$106K0%62026
1510411$17K0%52012
1521711$27K0%62011
Not reported11$12K0%51985
1512011$5K0%52021
1514211$25K0%62013
1524310$28K0%82013
1501410$31K0%52018
1520610$163K0%92022
150909$99K0%52019
152339$510K0%21996
152169$172K0%62019
150349$64K0%52003
150898$93K0%22018
152327$12K0%52016
153327$68K0%52021
150577$55K0%52024
150636$40K0%42018
150826$88K0%32024
150286$17K0%42018
152086$42K0%52010
152146$44K0%32026
150456$25K0%21996
150475$13K0%32018
150915$1.1M0%32024
151445$69K0%52024
152244$23K0%42025
152044$21K0%42010
152113$16K0%32018
150863$25K0%22004
150203$16K0%32018
150493$32K0%32011
150513$86K0%22004
190343$298K0%32001
151102$00%22003
150052$38K0%22021
170682$00%21996
150072$22K0%22004
150832$4K0%21996
150462$00%22004
152781$800%11980
150581$00%12004
165031$1K0%11994
151341$37K0%11985
160591$3910%11985
100001$00%11986
152181$00%11979
150321$6030%11980
150751$4K0%12004
150061$9140%11980
163411$26K0%11996
151121$143K0%12009
151331$41K0%11985

Click a column to sort. Click a ZIP to load it in the lookup above.

When does Allegheny County flood?

September accounts for the most flood losses (1,394 claims, 29%). Claims by month of loss:

MonthClaimsShare
January61713%
February1323%
March742%
April1453%
May3898%
June63813%
July75716%
August49010%
September1,39429%
October301%
November982%
December681%

Year-by-year detail

Year of lossClaimsPaid
202615$61K
202522$749K
202492$2.8M
20232$7K
202213$24K
2021111$1.2M
20205$16K
2019160$6.4M
2018330$8.7M
201774$1.1M
201623$201K
201567$756K
201425$128K
2013180$2.9M
201238$1.1M
201136$228K
201096$756K
2009126$2.1M
200812$26K
2007176$1.7M
20065$53K
200537$188K
20041,221$35.8M
200319$802K
200223$128K
200114$335K
2000113$1.7M
199966$701K
199820$50K
199772$431K
1996495$6.5M
199544$401K
199426$95K
19934$28K
19928$13K
19916$22K
199087$238K
198915$40K
19882$2K
198756$87K
1986122$917K
1985119$698K
198435$73K
198356$113K
198243$72K
1981116$390K
1980152$322K
1979169$278K
197884$134K

Neighboring counties

Allegheny County borders 4 areas we cover. Flood risk does not stop at a county line, so it is worth comparing.

NeighborClaimsPaidOutside high-risk
Allegheny County (this page)4,832$81.6M34%
Westmoreland County1,612$21.6M35%
Washington County1,131$21.1M22%
Butler County874$15.4M17%
Beaver County832$13.7M16%

All 67 Pennsylvania counties → · County and ZIP rankings →

Common questions about flooding in Allegheny County

Has Allegheny County flooded recently?
Yes — the most recent flood loss with an insurance claim on file was on 2026-09-03, and claims were filed in 10 of the last 10 years (824 claims from 2017 to 2026). FEMA’s data runs to 2026-09-08, so the newest events may not appear yet.
What flood zone is Allegheny County in?
There is no single answer — zones are drawn parcel by parcel, so one street can be Zone AE and the next Zone X. Across 4,382 Allegheny County claims with a zone on file, the most common was Zone AE (39%), and 66% were in a high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. For one address, look it up on the free flood check or FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center; the zone breakdown above shows what each zone has cost here.
Do I need flood insurance in a low-risk zone here?
Lenders generally require it only in high-risk A and V zones. But 34% of Allegheny County’s claims came from moderate- and low-risk zones. Whether to buy coverage is your call — see flood zones explained and check your address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center.
Can I see whether a specific house has flooded?
Not here. FEMA removes addresses before publishing, so these figures describe areas, never a property. Our guide how to check if a house has flooded lists the questions and records that can tell you about a specific home.
Why might the real number of floods be higher?
Only buildings with National Flood Insurance can file these claims, and most homes are not insured for flood. More on what the counts mean in understanding NFIP claims data.

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About these numbers

Figures are aggregated from FEMA’s OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims dataset (county FIPS 42003, data as of 2026-09-08). They cover only properties that carried National Flood Insurance — most homes do not, and private flood policies are not included — so real flood damage is larger than these counts show. Dollar amounts are as paid, in nominal dollars. Flood zone is the zone used to rate the policy at the time, which may differ from today’s map. FEMA states this dataset is not an official federal report. Use it for background, not for a purchase, insurance or legal decision; for a specific property ask the seller for its flood disclosure or the owner’s NFIP loss history.

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