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Flood insurance · Flood Re

Flood risk shouldn't mean no cover

Millions of homes sit in areas at risk of flooding. Flood Re keeps home insurance affordable for many of them until 2039. Check whether yours qualifies, and what to do if it doesn't.

Updated 6 October 2026 · Figures sourced and linked
Check Flood Re eligibility →Check your flood risk ↗
6.3mProperties in England in areas at risk of floodingSource: Environment Agency, 17 December 2024
353kHouseholds supported by Flood Re in 2025/26Source: Flood Re, 22 July 2026
£30kAverage domestic flood payout in 2025, up 60%Source: Association of British Insurers, 17 February 2026
£312mPaid on home flood claims in 2025, up 38%Source: Association of British Insurers, 17 February 2026

The risk

One in four homes by mid-century

The Environment Agency's national flood risk assessment (NaFRA2) found around 6.3 million properties in England in areas at risk from rivers, the sea, surface water or a combination. Surface water, from rain that can't drain away fast enough, affects far more homes than rivers and the sea.

With climate change, the agency expects that to reach around 8 million by the middle of the century: one in four properties in England (Environment Agency).

Flood claims are already rising. Domestic flood payouts rose 38% to £312 million in 2025, and the average flood claim reached £30,000 (ABI). Look up your address with the government's long-term flood risk checker.

At risk by mid-century (projection)~8m
At risk from any source today6.3m
Surface water4.6m
Rivers and the sea2.4m

Properties in England in areas at risk of flooding. Some are at risk from more than one source, so the parts exceed the total. Source: Environment Agency, NaFRA2.

Flood Re checker

Could your home use Flood Re?

Flood Re is a reinsurance scheme, not an insurer. You buy home insurance as normal; behind the scenes your insurer can pass the flood part of the policy to Flood Re for a fixed premium tied to your Council Tax band rather than your actual flood risk. Flood claims on those policies carry a fixed £250 excess (Flood Re premiums).

It's funded by a levy on UK home insurers, currently £160 million a year (Flood Re 2025/26), and supported an estimated 353,000 households in 2025/26.

Eligibility follows eight published criteria. Answer six questions to see where you stand.

1 · Built before 1 January 2009?
2 · Has a domestic Council Tax band (A–H) or equivalent?
3 · You or family live there some or all of the time, or it's empty?
4 · What kind of building?
5 · Who holds the policy?
6 · In England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland?
0 of 6 answered

Based on the published Flood Re eligibility criteria. A guide only: confirm with the official Flood Re eligibility tool and your insurer.

After a flood

Build back better

A standard flood claim puts your home back as it was. Flood Re's Build Back Better lets insurers fund up to £10,000 more than like-for-like repairs for property flood resilience: flood doors, non-return valves, raised sockets, water-resistant plaster and floors (Flood Re review, 2024).

Over 70% of the home insurance market offers it, and after recent serious floods 30% of the scheme's flooded homes took it up. If you claim for a flood, ask your insurer about it before repairs start.

2039

Flood Re has an end date

Flood Re was set up to be temporary. Its 2025/26 annual report describes preparations for a planned transition to a sustainable, risk-reflective flood insurance market in 2039 (Flood Re).

In practice, that means flood cover will eventually be priced on each home's actual risk. Resilience work done now, whether through Build Back Better or your own improvements, is the best protection against a price jump later.

If your home isn't eligible, for example because it was built after 2008, mainstream insurers may still cover it. If they won't, a broker that specialises in high-risk or flood-prone homes is the usual next step. Our buildings insurance guide covers how to get the sum insured right.

Questions

Straight answers

What is Flood Re?
A joint government and insurance industry reinsurance scheme. Your insurer can pass the flood part of your home policy to Flood Re for a fixed premium set by your Council Tax band, not your actual flood risk (Flood Re). You still buy from, and claim through, your normal insurer.
Is my home eligible for Flood Re?
Broadly: built before 1 January 2009, a domestic Council Tax band A–H (or equivalent), lived in privately (or unoccupied), a single home or a building of two or three homes, and insured by individuals in the UK. Try the checker above or read the full Flood Re eligibility criteria.
Why aren't homes built after 2009 covered by Flood Re?
To avoid encouraging new homes in flood-risk areas. The 2009 cut-off dates back to an earlier government and insurer agreement that began in 2008. Newer homes should have been built to current flood planning rules.
Does flood cover cost more under Flood Re?
Flood Re charges insurers a fixed premium by Council Tax band, and flood claims on ceded policies carry a fixed £250 excess (Flood Re). The rest of your premium, for fire, theft and so on, is priced by your insurer as normal.
What is Build Back Better?
After a flood claim, insurers in the scheme can fund up to £10,000 above like-for-like repairs for flood resilience measures, such as flood doors, raised sockets or water-resistant floors (Flood Re).
What happens when Flood Re ends in 2039?
Flood Re was never meant to be permanent and is preparing for a planned transition to risk-reflective pricing in 2039 (Flood Re annual report). Homes that have invested in flood resilience should be better placed when prices start to reflect actual risk.

Sources

Where the numbers come from

We use primary sources only: trade bodies, regulators and government. Figures were checked on 6 October 2026. Spot something out of date? The source link is the fastest way to check.

  1. Environment Agency. National assessment of flood and coastal erosion risk in England 2024. 17 December 2024.
  2. Environment Agency. Environment Agency publishes major update to national flood and coastal erosion risk assessment. 17 December 2024.
  3. GOV.UK. Check your long term flood risk. accessed October 2026.
  4. Flood Re. Flood Re eligibility criteria. 7 May 2024.
  5. Flood Re. How are the premiums set for ceded policies to the scheme?. accessed October 2026.
  6. Flood Re. Flood Re reports strong financial performance as it enters next phase (Annual Report 2025/26). 22 July 2026.
  7. Flood Re. Quinquennial Review 2024. July 2024.
  8. Flood Re. Flood Re eligibility tool. accessed October 2026.
  9. Association of British Insurers. Adverse weather pushes property insurance payouts to £6.1 billion in 2025. 17 February 2026.

Keep going

Home insurance UK →What buildings and contents cover do, which you need, and how to compare policies on more than price.Buildings insurance →Insure the rebuild cost, not the market value. Check your sum insured against rebuild inflation.Contents insurance →Add up your belongings room by room and spot items over the single-item limit.Average home insurance cost →ABI premium data by quarter, plus what paying monthly really costs.