Over five million homes in England are at risk of flooding

It’s a stark statistic but one that we should pay attention to – there are 5.2 million properties in England that are currently at risk of flooding.

According to recent polling, only a third of people in areas at high risk of flooding believe that their home could be at risk, with most people assuming it’ll never happen to them.

But with climate change already causing more frequent, intense flooding and sea levels on the rise, we all need to know what to do, should the worst happen.

That’s why Rightmove has teamed up with the Environment Agency for Flood Action Week (Monday 20^th January – Sunday 26^th January) to ensure that you know what to do in an emergency situation.

Knowing what to do in a flood could save your life

According to the Environment Agency, the average cost of flooding to a home is around £30,000.

Flooding also brings a significant risk to life. The mental health impacts of flooding can last for two years or more after flooding has happened. Depression, anxiety and PTSD can affect up to a third of people who have been flooded.

But, crucially, taking steps to prepare for flooding, and knowing what to do in a flood can significantly reduce the damages to a home and possessions (by around 40%), reduce risk to life, and reduce the likelihood of suffering from mental health issues in the future.

Know how to Prepare. Act. Survive.

The good news is that there are some simple things you can do to prepare for flooding. Knowing what to do in a flood could help keep you and your family safe, and save you thousands of pounds in damages and disruption.

Caroline Douglass, Director of Incident Management at the Environment Agency, said: “Flooding can cause serious disruption to people’s lives. We can’t prevent it, but we can help homeowners to be more flood resilient. Those who are aware of the risk and have done something about it are able to reduce damage to their homes and possessions considerably.”

Flooding to homes

• 5.2 million properties in England are at risk of flooding
• The average cost of flood damage to a home is £30,000
• The average cost of flooding to a business is £82,000
• If you are flooded, temporary accommodation costs on average £10,000
• If you are flooded you are likely to be out of your home for an average of five months
• Know what to do when you receive a flood warning and download the three point flood plan

Driving through flood water

• Avoid driving through flood water. Just 30cm of moving water can float an average family-sized car – it’s even less for smaller cars
• Driving through flood water is the number one cause of death during flooding
• Over three-quarters of cars that are rescued from flood water have to be written off
• Just one egg-cupful of water sucked into your engine will wreck it

For more information, visit the government’s official flood information service.