Flood victims offered help with new insurance scheme

Households devastated by flooding will get help through a new scheme aimed at helping them get insured - but it will not cover houses built after 2009.

The new FloodRe scheme will help previous flood victims gets affordable cover against future events.

It is estimated that up to 350,000 people living in flood-risk areas across the UK will benefit, including many who will have a choice of providers for the fist time in years.

However, homes built after 2009 will not be covered and commercial properties are also not eligible for the scheme.

FloodRe offers financial backing for insurers lefts picking up the bill in the case of floods, and more than half of UK insurers have already joined the scheme.

It offers a centralised pool of money for repairs set aside jointly by firms and funded by a household levy on home insurance nationally. As a result, homes which were previously deemed too high risk can now get cover.

Brendan McCafferty, chief executive of Flood Re, said he is "delighted" that the scheme is now live, saying it should make insurance "more affordable and accessible".

However, homeowners have been told to make sure they shop around to ensure they get the best deal.

There is also a potential row brewing among those who have been left out of the scheme.

Homes built after 2009 are not covered as it was felt there needed to be an incentive against building in flood-prone areas.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has said that it can cost between £20,00 and £45,000 to dry out and repair a single waterlogged property, meaning huge insurance bills and excesses for those who have previously been flooded to get future cover.

Insurers estimated the cost of the recent storms Desmond, Eva and Frank during December and over the new year at around £1.3 billion, with an average payout of £50,000 per claimant.