Flood Insurance

Floods

The UK has never had what could be described as stable weather. But as our climate changes, extreme weather conditions will continue to take their toll on our homes. Flooding is set to become a seasonal regular. You can replace much of what gets damaged in a flood - insurance is a great thing! But being prepared for a flood will mean that you can keep damage to your belongings to an absolute minimum.

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These tips, provided by the Met Office, will help you to be prepared – whatever the weather.

Tip 1: Knowledge is power – so make sure you stay informed

One of the best ways to keep up to date is for people to check out the Met Office website. Here you will find warnings of severe weather under the National Severe Weather Warnings Service. The service is provided by the Met Office as part of our commitment to the Public Weather Service and the warnings not only enable civil emergency services to trigger plans to protect the public, they are alsso provided to let us take actions of our own to minimise risk and the impact of severe weather. Recently we’ve made changes to the structure of the warnings system to give earlier advice of impending severe weather than before, using a ‘traffic light’ system colour-coded to identify the current status.

Of course we work closely with the Environment Agency and its website is the place to go for flood advisories and warnings once the heavy rain is falling. The Agency also operates a telephone Floodline which is 0845 988 1188 and people living in vulnerable areas can also sign up to direct warnings via various methods: again, details can be found on the website.

Tip 2: Listen to the advice of the emergency services – they are well informed

Severe weather and flood warnings remain the very best way to get advice, but that advice is now been supported by the work of the Flood Forecast Centre in London. This joint operations centre run in partnership by the Met Office and the Environment Agency has been set up in response to recommendations made by Sir Michael Pitt in his report on the floods of summer 2007. Although not serving the public directly – the forecasts and warnings are aimed at the emergency services – combining the expertise of Met Office weather forecasters and Environment Agency hydrologists will ensure more immediate and focused action to help protect everyone in cases of extreme rainfall and periods of tidal and coastal flooding.

Tip 3: Remember – severe weather can do damage even if it doesn't flood

The National Severe Weather Warnings cover not just rain but a full range of different severe weather, from severe gales to heat stress warnings, all of which can have a real impact on each of us. The Met Office has joined with organisations such as the Highways Agency and the Building Research Establishment to provide advice on steps to take before, during and after severe weather, whether this is during high winds or when there is snow and ice. It may sound obvious, but how many of us take the time close and fasten doors and windows ahead of a storm? This and other advice is available on the severe weather pages of the Met Office website.

Throughout the summer we work in association with the Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly to forecast for periods of extreme heat. During heatwaves there are things we can do to protect vulnerable people, such as the very young and older people, from the most severe effects of heat stress. You can find out more via the Met Office's severe weather FAQ.