Altering your home to protect against flooding

You can make permanent changes to your home to reduce future flood damage. Making these alterations can significantly reduce the time and cost of recovering from flooding. Find out what kinds of changes you can make and where to get professional advice.

Making changes to your home

Before undertaking any work, make sure that you talk to your insurer to find out what work can be paid for under your policy. Your insurer will usually pay for 'like-for-like' amendments - restoring your home to a similar state to before the flood. You are likely to have to pay for any work beyond like-for-like amendments yourself. The cost of making your home better able to deal with flooding is likely to be a lot less than the cost of clearing up after flooding.

Alterations you may want to consider are:

  • laying ceramic tiles on the ground floor
  • using rugs instead of fitted carpets
  • raising the height of electrical sockets to at least 1.5 metres above ground floor level
  • using lime plaster instead of gypsum plaster on walls
  • fitting stainless steel, plastic or solid wood kitchens instead of chipboard ones
  • installing free-standing kitchen units that you can move
  • putting main parts of a heating or ventilation system, like a boiler, upstairs or raised well above the ground floor
  • fitting non-return valves to all drains and water inlet pipes, which only let water flow one way
  • replacing wooden window frames and doors with man-made ones like UPVC - they are easier to clean
  • installing flood resistant air bricks in place of existing vents

Please use the link below to view a diagram of where changes can be made to prevent flooding in your home.

Get professional advice before making changes

Before you make any changes to your home, make sure that you get professional advice. You can find a qualified professional by contacting the following organisations:

Follow the tips in ‘Choosing a good builder’ to help you find someone to help you carry out any building work.

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