Grandfathering Letter—How do I get one?

When a lender requires proof that a policy is rated using NFIP grandfather rules, Fidelity National’s flood processing group can review the documentation and then send a letter to the mortgage company directly with a copy to the agent and the insured within 7-10 processing days.

For your consideration, prior to the request for Grandfathering letter:

• When a mortgage company flood zone differs from the flood zone used for rating the policy, be sure to check for grandfathering eligibility rather than assuming the zone on the policy is incorrect.
• If the grandfathering rating on your policy cannot be substantiated to satisfy the lender, then the flood zone on the current policy term will have to be corrected to the current zone shown on the map.
• Rating Errors uncovered during this process cannot be grandfathered and must be corrected.

To make the request, please email Flood Customer Service via FloodCustomerService@fnf.com and they will review the documentation and process the letter to the lender directly.

The email must include:

• the current policy number and term,
• a copy of the mortgage company letter,
• the date the grandfathering letter must be received by the lender
• Specific info as noted below depending on the type of grandfathering used to rate the policy.

What type of Grandfathering was used to rate the policy?

Continuous Coverage

• A copy of the flood declarations page that shows coverage was in effect prior to the last map revision. (The effective dates on the prior declaration page must match the current effective dates, proving continuous coverage, to be eligible.)
• Proof of flood zone at the time of application (such as the zone determination or copy of flood map showing the risk zone--at time of application).

Post-FIRM Built in Compliance

To be eligible for Built in Compliance grandfathering both of the following must apply:

• The Date of Construction must be prior to the current map panel effective date and after the community has entered the flood program.
• The lowest floor for rating must be at or above the base flood elevation for buildings in Special Flood Hazard Areas.

Specific info to be provided would be one of the four below:

• A copy of the map panel showing the panel number, date of the FIRM, the flood zone, BFE, and the exact location of the building on the panel.
• A letter from a community official with panel number, date of the FIRM, the flood zone, base flood elevation (BFE) and property address.
• For buildings that are located in Special Flood Hazard Area an elevation certificate (EC) that was completed at the time of finished construction, provided the EC reflects the panel number, date of the FIRM, flood zone, and BFE at the time.
• A current EC with a comment from the surveyor indicating the grandfathering information (panel number, date of FIRM, flood zone, and BFE).