Co-op Insurance helps customers after floods

The Co-operative Insurance, whose staff volunteered to work over the Christmas holiday to support flood-prone customers, says it will not apply an increase to policy excesses for homeowners affected by flooding.

According to the Association of British Insurers, the industry as a whole helped almost 1,500 families get into alternative accommodation and made emergency payments totalling £2.6m after Storm Desmond hit the UK over 4-5 December. Final statistics for the floods that followed are still being calculated.

In December, Co-op Insurance, part of the Co-operative Group, received hundreds of claims due to storms and flooding.

James Hillon, head of products and pricing, said: “We recognise the serious impact that the storms have already had and would like to reassure our customers that their insurance cover will continue as normal.

“As an insurer that puts customers first, we don’t expect individuals to be priced out of insurance as a result of the floods and we will not apply an increase to policy excesses for flood cover.”

Head of claims Jonathan Guy added: “Our priority is ensuring that our customers are safe and back in their homes as quickly as possible. We continue to treat all storm and flooding claims as a priority.

“For all flooded properties we’ll offer customers advice and guidance on how they can make their home more flood-resilient. Wherever possible we’ll seek to offer this as part of the restoration process.

“When I was out visiting our customers, it was clear that they all had differing priorities, so getting to understand what was important to them and then tailoring the claim appropriately to make sure their needs were taken into account has been really crucial.

“Vulnerability takes many forms and everyone I saw needed reassurance and guidance regarding the next steps.”

Co-op Insurance staff volunteered to work over the Christmas break to deal with new claims and pro-actively contact customers within 250 metres of areas at risk of flooding to see if they needed help. Co-op Insurance’s loss adjusters also drafted in extra support.

After Storm Desmond, severely affected customers in Cumbria received £50 of Co-op Food vouchers to help them through Christmas.

Customers who were unable to stay in their homes have been or are being re-homed in temporary accommodation as quickly as possible. And they have been automatically authorised to repair their properties or move to alternative accommodation if required.

• Correction: This article was amended on 13 January. A previous version said Co-op Insurance would not be raise premiums for homeowners affected by flooding. It will not be raising excesses.