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Home insurance in a flood area

On 21 Nov 2012 at 2:24pm Ed Can Do wrote:

My home insurance is up for renewal soon and much as I enjoy ringing companies and going through all the questions until we get to "Has your home ever flooded?" then getting told they can't insure me, I figured I'd ask here to see if anyone has any recommendations for a company that will insure you in a house that flooded back in the day for less than £700. Mine cost £670 last year but we got burgled since then so I'm not expecting it to be cheap this year

On 21 Nov 2012 at 2:33pm No Pot Pourri wrote:

Liverpool Victoria?

On 21 Nov 2012 at 3:20pm queequeg wrote:

Yes, LV, in Malling St £225

On 21 Nov 2012 at 4:29pm Lewes Resident wrote:

Badly Flooded in 2000 Orchard Road. We were with the Pru and still are, they were very good when we needed the assistance. Under £250

On 21 Nov 2012 at 7:06pm Feline wrote:

Nationwide.

On 21 Nov 2012 at 8:17pm Sheriff John Stone wrote:

Co-op insurance are very good in lewes. Especially in areas that flooded such as pells, malling and cliffe

On 21 Nov 2012 at 9:54pm Ed Can Do wrote:

We're already with LV! I'll give those others a ring though, cheers for the advice.

On 22 Nov 2012 at 9:42am Helpful Henry wrote:

Either that or just buy a snorkle

On 22 Nov 2012 at 9:51am brixtonbelle wrote:

You can try the comparison sites, but some of the companies don't use them, so it's a hard slog doing the ring round, I'm afraid. Also if your house is listed or in a conservation area I found many companies would not take the risk. (Although if your house has already survived several hundred years of floods, I'm not sure why it should make any difference) . We eventually got cover through L+G, abt 800 quid for house and contents. Prices have also risen because of the uncertainty over government flood protection plans.

On 22 Nov 2012 at 10:14am Southover Queen wrote:

If you google "flood insurance" some specialist sites come up; they might be worth talking to. I would be wary of switching insurance just to save a few quid though: many years ago I made the mistake of accepting a very low quote. When I had a claim (for subsidence, so not cheap) they essentially imposed so many restrictions that I had to do the necessary work myself at a cost of several thousand quid. I ended up having to sell to cover the cost, in fact.

Comparison sites exist to cherry pick the low risk clients. If there's even a sniff of a recent claim or vulnerability (such a flood) they'll reject you. When you do the comparisons be sure to read the "assumptions" they make about you and your property when they give you a quote because like as not you'll be excluded for one thing or another. And of course that means that you're not insured at all...

On 22 Nov 2012 at 11:12am drone wrote:

I`m with Liverpool Victoria. They seem OK with flood cover

On 22 Nov 2012 at 12:47pm SussexScribbler wrote:

I had the same problem when I moved to a previously flooded street in Lewes. Then the 10-year anniversary came up in 2010 and I found that more than one insurer dropped the premium if you hadn't been flooded in the last 10 years.

On 22 Nov 2012 at 7:35pm TDA wrote:

We get ours with Halifax, and the house flooded in 2000. 400 quid ish

On 23 Nov 2012 at 9:08am Ducatipete wrote:

LV are very good but the important thing is to talk with your existing insurer before switching, most will negotiate their premium if you only ask. Continuity of cover is the key.