What to do before, during and after a flood
Use our map to find out if your property is at risk from flooding.
Be aware of flooding in your area by keeping an eye on water levels and the weather forecast.
You can sign up online for free flood warnings.
Or check our live flood map. We use three types of warnings.
These could give you time to protect your home and move livestock or machinery:
Flood alert
This means flooding is possible. Be prepared.
Flood warning
This means flooding is expected. Immediate action required.
Severe flood warning
This means severe flooding. Danger to life.
A flood plan can help you prepare for flooding and reduce the impact it might have. It can also help with the recovery process.
Print and fill in your own flood plan using one of our templates:
Or use this checklist to write your own:
Know who to contact and how:
Keep personal items, like photo albums and treasured mementos in a safe place:
don't wait for a flood to move them because it might be too late and dangerous
Think about what you would need to move to safety during a flood:
Think about who you could ask for help, or could you offer help to vulnerable friends, family or neighbours?
Your land may be at risk of flooding even if your house is not. Make sure you have a flood plan and share it with all staff so they are familiar with it. Keep your plan somewhere safe and easily accessible.
Your flood plan should include all the above points and it should also consider:
Top tips to reduce the likelihood of flooding on a farm:
Prepare a flood kit of essential items and keep it handy. This should include:
Keep a list of important phone numbers in your flood kit, this should include:
The Flood Re scheme helps households in areas at risk of flooding find affordable home insurance - ask your existing insurer if your home is eligible.
Your insurance company may ask for an Insurance Related Request (IRR) to help them decide whether they will renew your housing insurance or give you a new quote. The IRR provides information about:
If you need a IRR, please contact our Customer Care Centre. You will need to tell us the full address of the property, a contact telephone number and, if possible, a map. The team will respond to you within 20 working days.
An IRR is free for the public but requests from commercial interests such as a solicitor or developer will cost £50 (plus VAT).
You can install property flood protection if your property is at risk of flooding, or as part of the repair if you have been flooded.
There is a free guide for households and businesses, produced by CIRIA (Construction Industry Research and Information Association), following their code of practice C790. It includes information on making your property more flood resilient.
Floodboards
These can be fixed to your doors and windows in preparation for a flood. They should then be removed and stored in an easily accessible place so you can use them again if needed.
Plastic covers to seal airbricks
These can stop flood water coming in through your airbricks.
Sandbags
Your local authority may have some sandbags ready to deploy at times of flooding, but their priority is to protect the public at large. You should check with your local authority in advance to find out what their policy is, and if there is a charge for the service.
If your local authority doesn’t supply sandbags, you can buy your own supply from DIY stores and builder’s merchants.
You can also make home improvements that will make it easier and cheaper to clean up after a flood.
Discuss these with your loss adjuster and builder:
Find out what to do during and after a flood.
All of our information about how to prepare for a flood is also available to print:
Details of other websites and organisations who can offer help and support: