Industry wants an end to flood uncertainty

The British Property Federation wants the Government and insurance companies to end what it calls uncertainty and lack of fairness in the Flood Re proposals.

Flood Re - a scheme which means annual insurance premiums will be capped and payouts for flood damage will come from a central pot of money - was meant to add a level of stability to the property industry as well as home owners.

But the BPF is worried that the Government currently wants to exclude leasehold and private rented properties from the measure because these categories are formally classified as commercial.

The Federation says the authorities cannot pick and choose which areas of the residential market they want to help. Without Flood Re, many agents fear that homes close to or within recently-flooded areas will be hard to sell as buyers investigate potential premiums.

Data from the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership shows there are at least 800,000 leasehold properties in England in flood risk areas, with 70,000 of those designated as being at high risk.

Floods do not discriminate, nor should the insurance industry. There's no justifiable reason to exclude leaseholders from Flood Re simply because they own a flat rather than a house. And it isn't fair to exclude almost four million PRS properties insists BPF policy director Ian Fletcher.