The property industry has urged government to rethink the scope of Flood Re after ministers confirmed that millions of homeowners could be left out of the new scheme designed to provide households with affordable flood insurance for their home.

. The BPF welcomed the consultation, but said it remained concerned over the current scope of Flood Re, and particularly the exclusion of the majority of leasehold property from the scheme.

The leasehold exclusion means that while most home owners who live in houses will be able to access affordable buildings insurance, most home owners who live in a flat will not. This is due to how Defra defines a “dwelling”. The BPF has long argued that, given that the scheme has been billed as one that will provide affordable cover for homeowners, all those who own a home, whether a house or a flat, should be able to access affordable cover. Homes built after 2009 and those in council tax band H will also not be covered by the scheme.

Ian Fletcher, director of policy at the British Property Federation, commented: “Over the past few months we have been given myriad excuses for the exclusion of leasehold properties from Flood Re. These have ranged from the competence of computer systems, to the lack of hard evidence, to quibbling over the difference between building and contents cover.

“The fact that we achieved a small concession for leasehold blocks of three or fewer to be included within the scope of Flood Re only serves to highlight the tenuous nature of these arguments and, on that basis, we would like to see the entire leasehold sector included. The current arrangement is simply not good enough, and we will be making this very clear in our consultation response.”

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