Norwich Union supports the new Statement of Principles for flood insurance, announced by the Association of British Insurers, (ABI).
Norwich Union supports the new Statement of Principles for flood insurance, announced by the Association of British Insurers, (ABI).
The insurer also believes that these new principles will bring increased confidence to homeowners and small businesses affected by flooding.
The statement sets out a number of principles, including:
- A commitment to insure properties, wherever possible, which are protected to at least the Government’s own minimum standards of flood defence
- A commitment to continue to cover existing customers for whom flood defences will be in place by 2007 and includes new provisions to insure the property if a customer sells their home*
- For those in high-risk areas where no improvements in flood defences are planned - a commitment to work with existing customers, local authorities and the Environment Agency to see if action can be taken to make the property insurable
To support these principles, Norwich Union is calling for the Government to make its flood defence database available by the end of 2002. This database will provide consistent information to insurers about the postcodes at risk from river or coastal flooding, as well as what level of flood defences are available at these locations.
Commenting on the new principles, Nick Pierson, head of public affairs, Norwich Union said: “These new principles bring much needed confidence to those homeowners and small businesses affected by flooding. They also address the concerns of those in high-risk areas, who wish to sell their properties.
“Flooding remains a key issue for homeowners, small businesses and insurers, with a ten-fold increase in the risk of flood predicted over the next century. We’ll continue to work with the Government in tackling flooding to ensure that as many properties as possible are protected in future.”
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Media contact:
Liz Kennett/Jenny Chapman at Norwich Union on 08703 66 68 63
Notes to editors:
* subject to the new owner fulfilling the normal underwriting criteria
- Norwich Union has been involved in a number of initiatives to help find solutions to problems of flooding. For example, the insurer has commissioned a digital map of Britain to help pinpoint and understand exactly which areas of the country are at risk from river flooding. The map will be used to provide more accurate premiums for individual homes and businesses according to their risk of flood. Commenting on the mapping project, Elliott Morley, in the House of Commons said: “I am very impressed with the work that Norwich Union is doing on digital mapping, which is much more accurate.”
- Norwich Union is the UK’s largest insurer. In general insurance it is more than 1.5 times the size of its nearest competitor and has a 19 per cent share of the market.
- It has a focus on insurance for individuals and small businesses. It insures:
- one in five households
- one in five motor vehicles
- more than 700,000 businesses
- Norwich Union products are available through a variety of distribution channels including brokers, corporate partners such as banks and building societies, and Norwich Union Direct.
- Norwich Union's news releases are available on the internet at www.aviva.com
- A selection of images are available from the Aviva Newscast site at www.newscast.co.uk
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