More than 43,000 homes built in England over the past two years are located in areas at medium or high flood risk, with insurers and climate advisers warning the trend could leave landlords and homeowners facing uninsurable properties.
Flood risk building increases
Analysis by insurer Aviva shows that 43,937 homes built between 2022 and 2024 sit in areas classified as medium or high flood risk. This represents one in nine of all new properties constructed during this period – up from one in 13 between 2013 and 2022.
Of the 396,602 new homes recorded by the Ordnance Survey during the two-year period, 26 percent face some level of flood risk. For landlords and investors buying newly built properties, the data highlights the importance of thorough flood risk assessment before purchase.
Greater London and Essex worst affected
Greater London and Essex account for the highest proportion of new at-risk properties at 32 percent, followed by Lincolnshire, East Yorkshire, and the west and north-west at 13 percent. The east of England recorded the lowest proportion at 2 percent.
The analysis cross-references new homes address data with the Environment Agency’s latest flood risk assessment at constituency level.
Post-2009 properties excluded from Flood Re
Properties built after 2009 are excluded from the government-backed Flood Re reinsurance scheme, which provides affordable flood insurance for homeowners. This exclusion affects all homes in the study period, potentially leaving landlords of newer flood-risk properties facing higher premiums or difficulty obtaining cover.
Emma Howard Boyd, former chair of the Environment Agency and climate policy adviser to Aviva, said: “We don’t want to be building today’s houses in places where they will become ever more at risk of flooding. Defra and the Ministry for Housing need to be working close together to make sure our housing targets aren’t preventing what we know is needed to protect future and existing homes from future levels of flooding.”
For landlords reviewing their insurance arrangements, the data adds another layer of consideration when purchasing buy-to-let properties.
Insurance costs rising sharply
The Association of British Insurers reported that domestic flood claims costs rose 38 percent in 2025 to £312 million, with average payouts to homeowners reaching £30,000 – a 60 percent increase. Total weather-related property claims reached £1.2 billion, up 14 percent year-on-year.
Jason Storah, chief executive 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’s particularly worrying that this trend has risen in recent years, just as housebuilding accelerates.”
Aviva’s projections suggest that by 2050, 15 percent of homes built between 2022 and 2024 will be at medium or high risk of flooding, with 30 percent facing some kind of flood risk.
Editor’s view
Landlords buying new-build should check flood risk status before exchanging. Properties built after 2009 cannot access Flood Re, which could mean significantly higher premiums or no cover at all. The government’s 1.5 million homes target makes this worse, not better.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 18 February 2026
Sources: Aviva, Environment Agency, Association of British Insurers
Related reading: RICS warns property professionals to prepare for rising flood risk
