One in nine new homes in England built in areas of flood risk, study shows | Flooding
In England, one in nine new homes built between 2022 and 2024 were in areas that could now be at risk of flooding, new data shows.
Figures show that the number of homes built in at-risk areas is increasing: previous analysis showed that between 2013 and 2022, one in 13 new homes was in potentially flood-prone areas.
The research comes as the government is under enormous pressure to deliver new affordable housing amid signs that climate breakdown is accelerating.
Data published by insurer Aviva reveals that of the 396,602 new homes recorded by the Ordnance Survey in England between 2022 and 2024, 43,937 are in areas with medium or high flood risk, while 26% of new homes are at some risk of flooding.
Emma Howard Boyd, former chair of the Environment Agency and who advises Aviva on climate policy, said the government’s target to build 1.5 million homes in this parliamentary term could create pressure to build in areas at high risk of flooding.
She said: “We don’t want to build today’s houses in places where they will be increasingly exposed to flooding. [the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs] and the Ministry of Housing must work closely together to ensure our housing objectives do not prevent what we know is needed to protect future and existing homes from future flood levels.
Aviva data also shows that by 2050, one in seven homes (15%) built between 2022 and 2024 will be at medium or high flood risk and almost a third (30%) will face flood risk as more extreme rainfall is predicted due to climate change.
The government said the analysis did not take into account flood protection arrangements already in place, although this was disputed by Aviva, which said this was the case.
Experts have said London’s flood defenses, for example, need to be urgently updated to protect the city.
The research comes after a Guardian investigation last year found that millions more homes in England, Scotland and Wales are facing devastating floods, and some towns may have to be abandoned as climate change makes many areas uninsurable.
This analysis revealed the scale of concerns in the insurance sector as larger areas of housing and commercial properties become more exposed.
Aviva’s analysis, which uses address data for new homes and cross-references it with the Environment Agency’s latest constituency-level flood risk assessment, found that Greater London and Essex have the highest proportion (32%) of new properties at risk. Lincolnshire, East Yorkshire, West and North West follow with 13%. The east of England has the lowest proportion of new homes at risk, at 2%.
Parts of the UK are at risk of being abandoned due to the risk of flooding, with terrace occupants in Ynysybwl, Wales seeing their homes bought by the council due to constant flooding. The town of Tenbury Wells is also slowly being abandoned by its occupants as they cannot get flood insurance.
People who live in new construction may have a harder time obtaining flood insurance. Homes built since 2009 are excluded from the government-backed Flood Re reinsurance scheme, which ensures the affordability and accessibility of flood insurance for homeowners.
Jason Storah, managing director of UK and Ireland general insurance at Aviva, said: “As our analysis shows, too many new homes have been built in higher risk areas. It is particularly worrying that this trend has increased in recent years, even as house building accelerates.”
“It is important to note that these homes are not protected by the Flood Re scheme, which excludes homes built after 2009 to prevent more new homes being put at risk. Unfortunately, as the study shows, this simply has not happened.”
Aviva is calling on the government to tighten planning rules to prevent new unprotected homes being built in flood zones.
Storah added: “We believe there should be a presumption against new developments in high-risk areas in planning rules, alongside mandatory flood resilience measures in building regulations for new homes in high-risk areas. This is particularly important in places where surface water flooding is widespread, which is more difficult to predict and protect against.
“In some areas, it’s not a question of if but when a home will flood. »
A government spokesperson said: “These figures are misleading because the research does not even take into account the flood protection measures in place. We will build 1.5 million homes without compromising safety, and our planning proposals will ensure that development does not continue where it would be unsafe due to the risk of flooding. This comes on top of a record £10.5 billion investment in flood projects, which will benefit almost 900,000 properties here 2036.”
The new data coincided with a call from the UK’s leading insurance trade body for the Government to take urgent action over soaring flood claims and compensation payments to homeowners whose properties were destroyed by rising waters.
Releasing its latest data covering 2025, the Association of British Insurers said the cost of national flood claims rose 38% last year to £312m. Meanwhile, the average compensation paid to a homeowner in the event of flooding has jumped by 60%, reaching £30,000.
In total, over the whole year, insurers paid out £1.2 billion in weather-related property losses: an increase of 14% (£142 million) compared to 2024.
Chris Bose, director of general insurance policy at the ABI, said: “Government action is essential to protect communities from the growing impact of extreme weather. This includes tougher planning rules to stop building in areas at high risk of flooding and designing homes with resilience in mind.”
Additional reporting by Rupert Jones
