Homes and businesses at risk of flooding

Plan how you'll respond to a flood. Use the following links to download a template:

• visit the GOV.UK website for information on personal flood plans
• visit the GOV.UK website for flood plan guidance for communities and groups
• visit the GOV.UK website for business flood plan.

Sandbags

Telford & Wrekin Council have a very limited supply of sandbags; we will provide up to 10 of these on a discretionary basis to help prevent internal property flooding where highway drainage is the principal source of flooding. This could take up to 10 days. We are not able to provide sandbags as an emergency response and will not provide sandbags if you are flooding from surface water, a public sewers or from a river. Please note we are not able to provide sandbags to prevent garages and gardens from flooding. If you feel at risk or require more than 10 sandbags, you could consider obtaining your own sandbags.

Do sandbags work? Traditionally, sandbags have been used to block doorways, drains and other openings into properties as well as to weigh-down manhole covers, garden furniture and to block sink, toilet and bath drains to prevent water backing up.

• They can keep water out for short periods which can be improved by using them in conjunction with plastic sheeting.
• They can filter out some muddy sediments found in flood waters.
• They are cheap and easy to obtain. However, sandbags are relatively ineffective when compared to purpose-designed flood protection products

However, sandbags are relatively ineffective when compared to purpose-designed flood protection products.

If you rent your home

Your landlord is responsible for repairs to your home if you’ve got flood damage.

Get advice from:

• Citizens Advice about dealing with flooding in a rented home
• Shelter about getting housing help if your home is flooded.

Clean up and safety:

Contact your insurance and make sure you take photos!

The below links contain information about what to do if you are flooded and how to clean up after a flood, use the links to find out more:

• What should I do? – National Flood Forum
• Flooding and health: public advice.

Dehumidifiers – your insurance will provide however if you are not insured voluntary organisations may be able to provide some.

More information:

• What to do after a flood - GOV.UK
• Report a flood or possible cause of flooding
• Recovering from a flood and the flood claims process if you’re a homeowner
• What to do if your business is affected by flooding.

Report to the Council

Understanding impacts helps us prioritise and may feed into future flood risk management schemes.

Report online

Community support, mental health and wellbeing

We understand that experiencing a flood can be frightening and stressful. Please click on the links below which offer helpful advice and support:

• Visit the Havant Borough Council website
• Visit the Telford Mind website
• Flooding and health: advice for the public - GOV.UK.

Also check out your local community groups to see if anyone in your area is offering additional aid.

Finding an insurer

If your property is at risk of flooding or has previously been flooded, it may be difficult to find an insurance company willing to sell you an affordable policy. The National Flood Forum can advise on how to get insurance and how to reduce your premium/excess.

The British Insurance Broker’s Association has details of brokers that specialise in properties that are difficult to insure.

The government has also put together a guidance document ‘Obtaining flood insurance in high risk areas’.

Flood Re

Flood Re is a joint government and insurance industry initiative to enable you to find affordable insurance for qualifying properties that are at risk of flooding or have been flooded.

Flood Re takes on the high flood risk elements of home insurance. Home insurers pay an annual tax which is collected and centrally managed. The high flood risk part of your policy is passed to Flood Re by your insurance company. If a valid claim is made on your insurance, Flood Re will reimburse the insurer from the centrally managed fund. More information can be found on the Flood Re website.

Insurance related request letter

Insurance companies may ask for an Insurance Related Request Letter if your property is at risk of flooding. The information will be used to determine whether they will insure you and how much it will cost.

The letter is free of charge for individuals and £60 for businesses, and will be sent within 20 working days. The letter is available by request directly from the Environment Agency.

The letter will explain:

• if your property is in a flood risk area
• how likely the area is to flood
• the protection given by local flood defences
• if there are any planned flood defences.

Flood risk report

If flood protection work has been carried out on your property, you or a surveyor can complete a Flood Risk Report to advise insurers how the work affects the flood risk.

Central government sometimes release flood grants and if Telford and Wrekin are eligible we will advertise this to properties and businesses whi have reported internal flooding.

If you flooded internally from Storm Babet in October 2023 you may be eligible to apply for the Property Flood Resilience (PFR) Recorvery Support Scheme Grant - to find out more and check eligibility please visit our Property Flood Resilience (PFR) Recovery Support Scheme Grant page.

• Flooding from the rivers Tern, Perry, Roden or Severn - The Environment Agency offers a free flood alert system called Floodline which you can register for on 0845 988 1188. Floodline provides flood warnings direct to you by phone, text or email. It also provides practical advice on preparing for a flood, and what to do if one happens.

• Flooding from the Coalbrook in Coalbrookdale - request to be added to the list by completing our online form - you will need to select Data Request/Coalbrookdale flood warning list/be added to warning list.
• Flodding from heavey rain and surface water - Keep an eye on the Met Office website and beware of any warnings.

• It is a property or business ownere's responsibility to protect their premises from flooding.