FLOOD RE

Is your home eligible for Flood Re?

• You or your family must live in the property, or the property must be entirely unoccupied
• You must have a domestic Council Tax band A to H
• Your home must only be used for private residential purposes
• Your home must have been built before 1st January 2009
• Your home must be located within the UK (excluding the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands)

You can get the full details around eligibility by visiting the Flood Re website.

Who pays for Flood Re?

Any insurer offering home insurance in the UK must pay into the Flood Re scheme. This raises £180 million every year that is used to cover claims for high flood risk home insurance policies.

There is also a standard £250 Flood Re excess fee you'll need to pay if a flood claim is made. This will replace the standard policy excess you've chosen, so you won't have to pay both at once.

How do you find out if a property has flooded before?

Luckily, if you’re in the process of buying a property, the seller has to disclose if water has entered the property or if it’s had any effect on the garden, driveway or surrounding land. If they don’t, they could have to pay damages worth tens of thousands of pounds.

You could also:

• Ask your estate agent and the owner if they are aware of any flooding history
• Speak to the neighbours to see if they’ve had flooding issues
• Ask your conveyancing solicitor to do a search on flood risk