Pub. 7 2019 Issue 2

Issue 2. 2019 7 The f inal rule also does not address the situation where the Compliance Aid sentence is in the policy as it is written in the rule; however, immediately after the Compliance Aid sentence, the policy contradicts the sentence in such a way that it makes it clear to the bank that the policy does not meet the def inition of private flood insurance. Daniela Clark serves as Associate General Counsel for Compliance Alliance. She holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a concentration in Management from the University of Texas at Arlington, AA- CSB. Daniela received her JD from Texas A&M Univer- sity School of Law and is a licensed attorney in the State of Texas. Daniela brings to Compliance Alliance her knowledge of consumer finance compliance.  Unfortunately, the final rule does not specifically address when the Compliance Aid sentence is not 100 percent correct or varies from the sentence in the rule. However, it would be most conser- vative to not rely on the sentence if it is not 100 percent correct or varies from the sentence in the regulation. It would be most conservative to go through the policy to be sure that it meets the definition of private flood insurance as it is defined in the rule. The final rule also does not address the situation where the Compliance Aid sentence is in the policy as it is written in the rule; however, immediately after the Compliance Aid sentence, the policy contradicts the sentence in such a way that it makes it clear to the bank that the policy does not meet the definition of private flood insurance. Again, it would be most conservative to not rely on the sentence if it is not 100 percent correct. It would be most conservative to go through the policy and document ex- actly why the policy does not meet the definition of private flood insurance as it is defined in the rule. One question that we have gotten on the hotline quite a bit is if the bank may review the policy to determine if it meets the definition private flood insurance, even if it does contain the Compliance Aid sentence. There is not a prohibition in doing that. However, there is a possibility that the sentence could be there, the bank goes through the policy, and then finds that the policy in fact does not meet the definition of private flood insurance, in which case the bank can deny it. However, the bank would want to thoroughly document this practice in the bank’s internal policy and procedures as well as in the loan file regarding why the bank found that the policy did not meet the definition of private flood insurance even though the policy included the Compliance Aid sentence that states that the policy does meet the definition. However, even if the policy does not meet the definition of private flood insurance under the definition in the rule, the bank may still accept the policy, subject to certain restrictions. In order for the bank to accept the policy under discretionary acceptance, the policy must (1) meet the minimum coverage amounts, (2) be issued by a license insurer, (3) include both the mortgage or and the mortgagee as loss payees, and (4) provide sufficient protection, considering safety and soundness, and the bank can document this in writing. The rule also includes specific requirements related to when a bank may accept a mutual aid society policy under discre- tionary acceptance. In order for the society to be considered a mutual aid society such that the rule would allow the bank to accept the policy, (1) the members of the group must share a religious, charitable, educational, or fraternal bond, (2) the group must have an agreement to cover losses due to property damage, including for flooding, and (3) the group must have a demonstrated history of fulfilling the terms of the agreements for flooding. Unfortunately, the final rule does not expand on mutual aid societies and new guidance related to the new final rule has not yet been released by the agencies. The bank will need to thoroughly document its analysis and determination regarding any mutual aid society policies. The bank will need to begin looking at these issues and mak- ing policy decisions soon, as the final rule is effective July 1, 2019. It applies when a building secures the loan and it is in a Special Flood Hazard Area (often referred to a SFHA, Flood Zone, High Risk Flood Zone, or 100-year plan), even if it is only taken in an abundance of caution during a MIRE event (Making, increasing, renewing, or extending). If the building does not secure the loan, it is specifically carved out of the col- lateral or the loan is secured by something else, like a CD, then the flood rule does not apply. If the building is not in a SFHA, then flood insurance is not required, but may be a safety or soundness consideration. If the bank would like to read more about the final private flood rule, Compliance Alliance has a summary of the final rule avail- able in our flood toolkit. Also, in the toolkit is a template flood policy that has been updated for the new final rule, as well as the checklist that was mentioned earlier. https://www.complian - cealliance.com/find-a-tool/by-toolkit/flood n