House insurance customers in the UK are likely to benefit from a higher level of government investment in flood defences.
AA Insurance has welcomed proposals from the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition to plough an extra £120 million into such work, even if the news comes too late to help the many families whose homes were damaged during the recent bouts of heavy rain.
Simon Douglas, director of the insurer, explained the cost of flood claims is likely to stand at around £1 billion this year, while such incidents can also prove costly with regard to infrastructure damage and from an economic perspective.
Mr Douglas pointed out greater investment in this area will protect thousands of properties from rising water levels. He added families “can sleep more easily when the rain starts to pour down, not just because the risk of flooding has been mitigated but that their home insurance will become more affordable too”.
The expert claimed thousands of homes will still be at risk of flooding in the future, however, with areas usually unaffected by such matters becoming more prone to flooding as a consequence of water runoff caused by heavy downpours.