Friday, June 28, 2013

UK Water Bill strikes insurance compromise to protect flood-prone properties

Conor McGlone in edie.net: The [UK] Government has agreed a deal with the insurance industry that will cap flood insurance premiums, linking them to council tax bands and ensuring people know the maximum they will have to pay.

After negotiations with the Association of British Insurers (ABI), the Government brokered a deal which replaces the current Statement of Principles that runs out at the end of July.

To fund this, a new industry-backed levy will enable insurance companies to cover those at most risk of flooding. All UK household insurers will have to pay into this pool, creating a fund that can be used to pay claims for people in high-risk homes.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson said: "Flooding is terrible for anyone affected by it. We have worked extremely hard with the industry to reach an agreement on the future of flood insurance.

"There are still areas to work through but this announcement means that people no longer need to live in fear of being uninsurable and that those at most risk can get protection, now and in the future."...

Winter floods at Bickleigh in 2006, shot by Pauline Burden, Wikimedia Commons via Geograph UK, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

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