Many homeowners unaware of flood risk, says Abbey
Despite the devastating flooding seen across the country this summer, research from Abbey shows that many people still do not know if their home is at risk.Abbey's figures suggest that 6.2 million people still do not know if their home is at risk from flooding, even though 39.9 million would be put off buying a home located on a flood plain and one in five people have had trouble selling their home because of a flood threat. Over half of all homeowners failed to check whether or not their current house was situated in a high-risk flood area before moving in, a worrying trend given that many experts have predicted that flooding will play an increasing part in Britain's future.Tony Beckwith from Abbey Insurance said: "The concern is that so many people are still unaware of the potential risk they might be facing. Six million people assumed they would have been told before they moved into the house if it was at risk, but actually the responsibility lies with the person buying the house to find out. "Maybe the introduction of Home Information Packs could have been more helpful by highlighting homes that have a history of flooding."He added: "It is interesting that the UK is the only country in Europe where the insurance industry is responsible for repairing property after major floods. In other countries there is a tax on insurance premiums that covers this type of event."
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