If you own a home in an area at risk of flooding, finding affordable buildings insurance may have been a struggle. From 4 April 2016 a new scheme, Flood Re, aimed to change that. It was set up under Part 4 of the Water Act 2014, and it is important to understand what it does and, just as importantly, what it does not.
How it works
Flood Re is a reinsurance scheme. You do not buy a policy from it. Your own insurer can pass the flood element of an eligible home insurance policy to Flood Re for a fixed charge set by the property’s council tax band. That helps keep cover affordable, but the premium you pay is still set by your insurer. The insurer still sells the policy and still handles any claim.
Who is left out
- Homes built after 1 January 2009. The thinking is that newer homes should have been built with flood risk in mind.
- Blocks of four or more flats. Freeholders, residents’ management companies and managing agents insuring a whole block will usually find it outside the scheme.
- Commercial property. The scheme is for homes. Shops, offices and other business premises are not covered.
If your building falls into one of these groups, the market will price flood risk in the normal way. That makes good information about the building more valuable, not less.
What owners can do
- Know your risk. Check the flood maps and the history of the site.
- Know your building. Floor levels, construction, the position of services and the condition of drainage all affect how a building copes with water.
- Check the sum insured. A flood claim on an underinsured building can be reduced in proportion.
- Plan for resilience. If a building does flood, the reinstatement is a chance to raise sockets, choose water resistant finishes and move boilers and meters higher, where the insurer agrees.
After a flood
Drying a building properly before reinstating it takes time, and needs monitoring rather than guesswork. Rushing to replaster over wet masonry is a common cause of later failures.
Our Insurance Claims and Reinstatement service acts for owners from first inspection to final account. See how two flats were dried out and reinstated after water damage.