Flood Re launches Build Back Better scheme

Flood Re, the joint initiative between the UK insurance industry and the UK Government, announced the launch of its Build Back Better scheme on 5 April 2022. The scheme allows people, through participating insurers, to claim up to £10,000 for flood resilience over and above the cost of work to repair damage caused by a flood¹. Flood Re describes it as a world first¹.

From April, participating home insurers began offering customers access to reimbursement of up to £10,000, over and above work to repair damage and loss caused by a flood¹. The first insurers to join during 2022 and early 2023 are NFU Mutual, Aviva, Ageas, Lloyds Banking Group (Bank of Scotland, Halifax and Lloyds Bank home insurance products) and LV= General Insurance¹.

Flood Re says the money can cover surveys to understand flood risk and potential mitigation, flood resistance measures such as flood doors, and flood resilience measures such as replacing damaged parts of a home with more flood resilient materials such as hard floors¹. Its examples include raising electrical sockets and white goods away from floor level, installing self-closing air bricks and flood resistant doors, and replacing flooring with waterproof tiling and grout¹. A separate account of the launch event, published on 6 April 2022, lists flood barriers, non-return valves, sump pumps and puddle pumps, waterproof plaster, waterproof kitchens and water resistant flooring among possible measures². It reports that insurers will be looking for the new CIRIA Code of Practice to be followed².

Flood Re gives the number of homes and businesses at risk of flooding in the UK as 5.2 million¹. It says more than 450,000 homes have benefited from the Flood Re scheme since its launch in 2016, and that four out of five homes with previous flood claims saw a price reduction of more than 50%¹. One trade page puts the average Flood Re insurance claim after a home flood at £35,000². The Flood Hub states that new households built after 1 January 2009 will not be eligible for the Flood Re scheme, and that Flood Re is due to run until 2039³.

Why it matters for households

The scheme applies to households whose home insurer is taking part, and the sums are paid as part of a flood claim, not separately. Flood Re states that it does not set consumer prices, which remain a decision for insurers, and that the purchase of a policy and the process of making a claim are unchanged¹. The Flood Hub notes that the excess paid in the event of a claim is capped at £250 across the board, regardless of Council Tax band³. It also sets out what the Environment Agency's flood alerts and warnings mean: a flood alert means flooding to low lying land and roads is possible and early preparations should be made; a flood warning means flooding is expected and immediate action is required; a severe flood warning means severe flooding is expected, with significant risk to life and property, and people should prepare to evacuate and cooperate with emergency services³. The Flood Hub advises calling the Environment Agency's Floodline on 0345 988 1188 if unsure of the immediate risk, and says the incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60 should only be used to report a flood³. Flood Re's chief executive, Andy Bord, said the trajectory of flood risk will only worsen without urgent, collective action¹.

What happens next

Flood Re says the Government has committed to publishing a Property Flood Resilience roadmap at the end of this year, identifying the action government and industry need to take to accelerate take-up of property flood resilience measures¹. It also cites a record £5.2 billion investment in the flood and coastal defence programme in England, which it says will better protect a further 336,000 properties and reduce national flood risk by up to 11%¹. Further insurers are expected to join the scheme beyond the first five¹.

Households can read what the scheme covers in What Build Back Better Means for a Claim, how it sits alongside home insurance in a flood risk area and Flood Re, and the range of resistance and resilience measures and resilient repairs. Related help includes property flood resilience grants, flood defences and alleviation schemes, flood alerts, flood warnings and severe flood warnings, making an insurance claim after a flood, flood doors and flood windows and property resilience surveys and professional installation.