Flood risk can affect home insurance cost, excesses, exclusions, and whether specialist cover is needed.
Flood risk is the chance that a home, land, or wider area could flood. Flooding can come from several sources, including rivers, the sea, surface water, reservoirs and groundwater.
Flood risk is not only a concern for homes near rivers or the coast. Heavy rain can also cause surface water flooding when water cannot drain away or soak into the ground fast enough. The Environment Agency describes this as rainwater that lies on or flows over the ground instead of draining away.
A flood-risk check can help you understand the wider risk in an area. But it has limits. GOV.UK says its long-term flood risk service does not show the exact chance of one individual property flooding. It also does not cover every cause, such as blocked drains or burst pipes.
Flood risk can affect how easy it is to find home insurance. It can also affect the price, flood excess, policy terms, and the information an insurer asks for.
Flood cover is often included within buildings insurance. This may help cover damage to the structure of the home, such as walls, floors, and fitted parts of the building. If you want belongings covered, you normally need contents insurance. MoneyHelper explains that buildings insurance and contents insurance cover different things.
A policy may cover costs such as drying out the property, repairs, debris removal, professional fees, and replacing damaged items. Some policies may also include alternative accommodation if the home cannot be lived in after a flood. The exact cover depends on the policy wording, limits, excesses, and exclusions.
Flood claims can be complex. The Financial Ombudsman Service says disputes can include whether a flood happened, whether the flood caused the damage, whether repairs were suitable, and whether the work requested was covered by the policy.
Flood damage is not always caused by a sudden river or coastal flood. The Financial Ombudsman Service says complaints can also involve issues such as a rise in the water table, underground streams, failed tanking, or damaged drains and underground pipes.
If the home cannot be lived in, many policies may cover reasonable temporary accommodation costs. This is usually subject to the policy terms, the cover limit, and whether the property is safe or habitable.
Flood Re is a joint Government and insurance industry scheme. It aims to help insurers offer more affordable flood cover for eligible homes at higher flood risk. The ABI explains that customers do not buy cover directly from Flood Re. Customers still arrange insurance through an insurer or broker, and the insurer handles any claim.
Flood Re says an eligible home must meet all of its criteria. For example, it must be used as a private home, have a domestic council tax band or equivalent, be insured individually or have an individual premium, and have been built before 1 January 2009. It must be in the UK, excluding the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.
Landlord and buy-to-let cases need care. Flood Re’s eligibility criteria say some residential buy-to-let properties may qualify if they meet all the rules, but others may not. This means flood cover for a let property can depend on the full details.
An insurer may ask about the property, previous flooding, past claims, nearby water, flood defences, the rebuild cost, occupancy, and whether the home is lived in, let out, or empty.
Take reasonable care to answer the insurer’s questions accurately. Wrong or incomplete answers can affect the quote, the policy or a future claim. Read more about non-disclosure and misrepresentation.
At Got You Covered, we arrange cover through insurers for a range of home insurance needs. This can include homes affected by flood risk, previous flooding, unoccupancy, renovation, or other non-standard features.
We may be able to help you look for flood risk insurance or high-risk home insurance, depending on the property and the insurer’s rules.
We also arrange landlord insurance for rental properties. Cover, price, excesses, exclusions, and acceptance can vary by insurer and policy. If a property has flooded before or is in a flood-risk area, we may need more detail before we can confirm what options are available.
Flood risk can affect both the chance of property damage and the way a home or landlord insurance policy is priced and written.
Before choosing cover, check the flood excess, buildings and contents limits, alternative accommodation cover, exclusions, and any conditions. This helps you understand what the policy may and may not cover before you buy.
The FCA says firms should support customer understanding by giving information that helps people make informed decisions and is fair, clear, and not misleading.
