The UK may be in deep water as flood insurance ends, says Richard Hinton
June 2013 will see an end to the government's agreement with the Association of British Insurers (ABI) to ensure universal provision of flood insurance. That might seem a long way off, but now is the time for property buyers and their conveyancers to prepare for the possibility there will be no flood insurance provision for millions of UK properties.
Statement of principles
The 2009 incarnation of the statement of principlesî agreement which since 2000 served to ensure all UK properties can be insured against flooding expires on 30 June 2013. No plans have been announced for the agreement to be replaced. This is because the 2009 agreement foresaw no need beyond 2013 for any extension, assuming the governments undertakings for investment in flood defences were fulfilled. British insurers agreed to cover flood damage to properties on the basis that the government would ìreduce the annual probability of flooding each year for a substantial number of properties. It was assumed when the agreement was signed the free market would
