Floods - One Year On conference
0 commentsLast week the "Floods – One Year On" conference was hosted by the Association of British Insurers, and a warning was given that half a million homes deemed to be at risk of flooding may become uninsurable unless action is taken by the Government. The aim of the conference was to explain how the insurance industry responded to the floods of summer 2007 and to at look at ways of reducing flood risks in the future.
According to research carried out by the ABI in advance of the conference, 80% of those unfortunate enough to be involved in last summer’s floods are of the opinion that the situation is getting worse and, even taking the nation as a whole, that figure only drops to 67%. 75% of the people polled feel that not enough is being done to sort out the problem, and most of them (98%) see improved drainage as a top priority.
The next greatest cause for concern was the Government's targets for new housing (3 million new homes by 2020), with the vast majority feeling that it would be appropriate to sacrifice the targets if the flood risk could be cut. 90% of respondents felt that new homes should not be built in areas of high flood risk unless rigorous defences were in place. The same percentage of people were in favour of a recognised standard, similar to the kite mark, which would prove to prospective buyers that the houses were built to a required standard of flood management.
The bill for last year’s floods is expected to reach £3 billion, so it is little wonder that the industry is concerned that many homes may end up uninsurable. Many insurance companies will now fix their prices at a level which reflects the risk, and even this may be dependent on the Government putting proper defences in place.
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