UK government-backed reinsurance scheme Flood Re has underlined the extent of action needed to ensure flood resilience reaches an acceptable standard by 2039, when the scheme is due to exit the market.
Alongside further, industry-wide action, Flood Re has highlighted its own efforts towards creating a solid base on which to build.
Compared to July 2020, Flood Re says there has been a 11% rise in policies backed for 2021, hitting a total of 218,090.
More than 350,000 properties are said to have benefited from the scheme since launch in 2016, with four out of five homes with previous flood claims experiencing a price reduction of more than 50%.
Additionally, Flood Re says 98% of homes at risk of flooding are now able to access quotes from more than five approved insurers.
To successfully protect homes from the impacts of flooding and to help mitigate its financial consequences, Flood Re believes that insurers and their supply chains must work together to effectively assess risk and set resilient strategies in place for their affected customers
Flood Re also stresses the need for the UK to ‘build back better’ after the occurrence of a flood, in order to increase the rate at which flood resistant housing and surrounding infrastructure is built.
“This year will thrust climate change and its consequences even further into the spotlight,” said Andy Bord, CEO, Flood Re.
“There is an urgent need for preventative action and measures to adapt to a warmer planet. The insurance industry must support the rollout of ‘Build Back Better’ to ensure that homes prone to flooding are adapted to protect them against the full impact of future flood damage.
“But it doesn’t stop there,” he added. “The Government needs to promote planning policies that do not make the problem worse.
The public needs to be made more aware of the risks of climate change and flooding to bring about the behavioural changes we need to see.”
