Half a million homes could be ‘uninsurable’
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| Floody hell (C) PA 2007 |
In case of another visit from a furious Mother Nature this summer, here are some tips from Halifax Home Insurance to help protect your home from flooding.
If a flood is on the way
1. Place sandbags outside doors, airbricks and windows to reduce the amount of flood water entering your property
2. Turn off the mains supplies of water, gas and electricity
3. Unplug electrical items and store upstairs or as high as possible
4. Disconnect pipes to cookers, washing machines and dishwashers to avoid damage if appliances move during floods
5. Move as much furniture as possible upstairs
6. Large items that cannot be moved upstairs should be weighed down with sandbags or heavy objects to ensure they don't float around and cause further damage to property during a severe flood
7. If furniture cannot be moved upstairs, empty contents of cupboards and drawers and store as high as possible
8. Move rugs and curtains upstairs, or hang them up over curtain rods out of the way of water
9. Keep your home insurer's policy details and telephone number to hand in case you need to make a claim following a flood
10. Remember to move irreplaceable sentimental items such as photograph albums to a safe place
Get good cover
If your home has already been flooded
1. Ensure mains supplies of water, electricity and gas have been checked by a qualified engineer before reconnecting
2. Dry out appliances that have been affected by flood water and ensure a qualified electrician or Corgi registered gas engineer inspects them before use
3. Open doors and windows to ventilate and dry out the property. Ensure your home is completely dried out before attempting any redecorating work
4. Contact your insurer and report any damage caused to buildings and/or contents as soon as possible
5. Take photographs of damaged items as it may help your insurer to settle a claim
6. Keep any ruined property as insurers may want to inspect it
