Renewed home insurance warning over flooding

Home insurance provider More Than has become the latest company to warn UK residents about the potential risk of flooding.

As fears grow over climate change, flooding is a serious and growing issue throughout the UK, potentially leading to a home insurance problem, the insurer states.

This is particularly the case in the east of England, the company notes, where the risk of flooding and subsequent home insurance claims is greatest.

However, Mike Holliday-Williams, the managing director of More Than, states that some properties could be uninsurable if the government does not build and maintain adequate flood defences.

Given the importance of buildings insurance to most mortgage offers, selling a property could become very difficult if mortgages are restricted or unavailable, leaving many homeowners in a difficult situation, he remarks.

Mr Holliday-Williams adds that the government's flood defence budget should be around £750 million by 2010.

Richard Mason, director of Moneysupermarket.com, recently claimed that the government could be threatening a gentleman's agreement with home insurance providers by reducing the amount spent on flood defences.