Flood

Flood Re

~4 min read

Category: Flood insurance · Reviewed by the Apex broking team · Last reviewed 2026-08-21

In short: Flood Re is a UK reinsurance scheme that lets insurers pass the flood element of an eligible household policy to a central pool, so that homes at flood risk can obtain affordable buildings and contents cover. It is funded by a levy on home insurers. The point most often got wrong commercially: Flood Re covers household insurance only. It does not cover commercial property, and in the general case it does not cover leasehold blocks of flats. The scheme is planned to end in 2039.

Category: Flood insurance Also known as: Flood Re scheme, flood reinsurance scheme Related concepts: Flood Re scheme, flood insurance UK, buildings insurance

Definition

Flood Re is not an insurer that the public buys from. It sits behind the market: a household insurer writes the policy in the ordinary way, and where the property is eligible the insurer may cede the flood risk element of that policy to Flood Re for a fixed, banded premium. If a flood claim is then made, Flood Re reimburses the insurer. The customer's relationship remains entirely with their own insurer.

The scheme is funded by a statutory levy on UK home insurers, and it was established to address the affordability and availability of household flood cover for properties at higher risk.

Household only — and why that matters commercially

This is the distinction that gets misapplied most often. Flood Re is a household scheme. It focuses on buildings cover for single private properties and contents cover for private households. Commercial property is outside the scheme entirely. The Government's position when the scheme was established was that the commercial market is more diverse and that there was little evidence of businesses being unable to find cover.

Leasehold blocks are also generally outside it. Buildings cover for blocks containing more than three flats does not qualify, which means a managing agent or freeholder insuring a block on a commercial property owners basis cannot cede that risk to Flood Re, whatever the flood exposure of the building. Brokers' bodies have argued this exclusion is too wide, but it remains the position.

For a business or a property owner at flood risk, therefore, the answer is not Flood Re. It is conventional underwriting: presenting the risk properly, evidencing resilience measures and defences, and where the market is difficult, structuring cover through higher flood excesses, sub-limits or specialist capacity.

Eligibility on the household side

For completeness, the main household eligibility rules are that the property must be a residential property in the UK used for private purposes, insured in the name of the individual or their immediate family, and it must not have been built after 1 January 2009 — a rule intended to avoid encouraging development on land at flood risk. Certain other categories, including blocks of more than three flats as noted above, fall outside the scheme.

Whether a particular policy has been ceded to Flood Re is a decision for the insurer, not the customer, and it does not change the cover the customer holds.

The 2039 end date and the transition

Flood Re was always designed as a transitional measure rather than a permanent feature of the market. It is planned to end in 2039, with the intention that flood risk is priced by the open market by that point and that the intervening period is used to reduce risk through defences, planning and property-level resilience.

The scheme has continued to develop within that timetable. Reform work announced in 2026 includes a substantial reduction in the ceded contents premium for the lowest council tax bands from April 2027, and the introduction of Flood Performance Certificates to give property owners a clearer picture of a property's flood risk and resilience. None of this changes the scheme's household-only scope or its planned end date.

Why it matters

Flood Re is widely cited in general commentary about UK flood insurance, and that commentary rarely flags its limits. A commercial client who reads that “the UK has a scheme for flood-risk properties” may reasonably assume it applies to them. It does not. Understanding that clearly — and moving straight to the underwriting conversation instead — saves a great deal of wasted time on a difficult flood risk.

Frequently asked questions

Does Flood Re cover commercial property?

No. Flood Re is a household scheme covering buildings insurance for single private residential properties and contents insurance for private households. Commercial property is outside the scheme entirely, and businesses at flood risk have to be placed through conventional underwriting in the open market.

Does Flood Re cover leasehold blocks of flats?

In the general case, no. Buildings cover for blocks containing more than three flats does not qualify for the scheme, so a freeholder or managing agent insuring such a block cannot cede the flood risk to Flood Re. Individual leaseholders' contents cover may be eligible where the other conditions are met.

When does Flood Re end?

It is planned to end in 2039. The scheme was always designed as a transitional arrangement, with the intention that flood risk returns to open-market pricing by that point and that the intervening years are used to reduce risk through defences and property-level resilience.

How does Flood Re work for a homeowner?

Invisibly, from the customer's point of view. The homeowner buys a policy from an insurer in the normal way; where the property is eligible, the insurer may pass the flood element of the risk to Flood Re for a fixed banded premium and is reimbursed by Flood Re if a flood claim is paid. The customer deals only with their own insurer.

Related entries

Commercial property at flood risk?

There is no scheme to fall back on — only a well-presented risk. That is what we do. Bristol-based, FCA-regulated.

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Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 724952). This page is general information, not advice on a specific policy.

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