Insurer welcomes flood review recommendations.
Zurich has welcomed the Pitt review but warned that the proposals need to be implemented fully in order to combat future flood devastation.
Anna Fleming, property claims director for Zurich, said: “We welcome the comprehensive recommendations within Sir Michael Pitt’s report, and now we will focus our efforts on collaborating as an industry to ensure that it is implemented.”
Fleming said implementing a partial solution is not a sustainable option, and will not prevent a repeat of the dramatic events seen last summer. She added that after experiencing last summer’s floods, Zurich has seen how the impact on individuals and businesses was exacerbated by the failure of key services such as water and power.
She said: “We have heard about the social costs elderly people unable to return to their homes, children unable to study effectively, and the large number of individuals and businesses who were either uninsured or underinsured across the country. The impact on this population has been severe and in some circumstances, life-changing.
“Hard choices will have to be made, but from a political perspective, it is difficult to see the electorate accepting a party who did not seek to address the causes of the floods which had such a marked effect on large parts of the country. It would be an extremely positive next step to see government publish an action plan as outlined in the review, as this will set out clear responsibilities and ensure that these recommendations become a reality.”
