357 flood insurance claims·$5.2M paid·3 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Collin County, Texas. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from severe storms dominates the flood risk profile in Collin County, accounting for 96 out of 107 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 10 general floods and 1 tropical storm. This hazard is driven by slow-moving fronts and upper troughs that generate training thunderstorms, as seen during widespread events on April 30, 2025, and through persistent storm activity on September 21 and 22, 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood impacts extend well beyond designated high-risk areas. Zone X properties recorded the highest claim volume with 159 claims averaging a payout of $25,325 and an average recorded water depth of 16 inches. Zone A accounts for 131 claims with an average payout of $22,965 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 34 claims averaging $13,302 with an average water depth of 2 inches. Zone X_SHADED recorded 25 claims averaging $4,065 with an average water depth of 2 inches, and Zone UNKNOWN logged 7 claims averaging $4,347 with an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties in both traditional high-risk zones and moderate-to-low risk Zone X areas, where substantial water depths and claim histories demonstrate significant flood potential during heavy rainfall events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
31% of Collin County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
191 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 7 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2015, with 48 claims and $1.3M paid.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
31 NOAA storm reports from Collin County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1966, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 26, 2024 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Hurricane Ike | Sep 7, 2008 |
| Hurricane Gustav | Aug 27, 2008 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 16, 2007 |
| Extreme Wildfire Threat | Nov 27, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
107 since 1996: 96 flash floods and 10 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2025 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 22, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 9, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 5, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 3, 2025 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 3, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 30, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 31, 2025. A slow-moving summer frontal system, in conjunction with occasional disturbances embedded within the northwest flow aloft, generated multiple rounds of thunderstorms both preceding and during the Labor Day weekend. The predominant hazard observed was flash flooding, attributed to the substantial rainfall produced by some of these storms.
Flash Flood · Apr 30, 2025. A slow moving front and an upper trough generated scattered thunderstorms on April 29, and widespread showers and thunderstorms on April 30, across much of North and Central Texas. Some of these storms became severe with large hail and damaging winds, but the most impactful weather was flash flooding due to the slow movement of the front and the resulting ���training��� of thunderstorms along and near…
Flash Flood · Sep 22, 2025. On the afternoon of September 21, North Texas experienced explosive thunderstorm development due to a shortwave trough and a meandering front interacting with a warm, unstable environment. These storms persisted through the evening and dissipated overnight into the morning of September 22. Multiple storms produced reports of large hail and damaging winds, with some isolated instances of flash flooding also occurring.
Flash Flood · Jun 9, 2025. A highly unstable and strongly sheared environment set the stage for an evening of severe weather, as a line of thunderstorms pushed south from the Southern Plains into North Texas on June 8. Widespread wind damage, scattered large hail reports and a few tornadoes occurred as storms continued south overnight into the early morning hours of June 9.
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Collin County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.