Ms Gillian Powell:

It is my belief that the insurance companies do not want to insure for risk. That is the bottom line. We often follow trends in North America and in that jurisdiction one takes out flood water insurance, rain water insurance or sea water insurance but if one is affected by any of these, one will not get cover against it. The committee members need to be really clear on this issue. Those in the industry are going to duck and dive. The situation for me and people like me is so serious that it strays into the area of Government. After Hurricane Katrina people sued the US Government over the failure of the levies. That route is open to people here too, although it would be a long, hard road to follow. There is an onus on the Government, under the UN Charter on Human Rights, to ensure that people have shelter. This issue can be addressed if there is enough passion to do so. If there is another catastrophe in Ireland, perhaps the passion will emerge then.

The committee members must be clear about this. When they ask what the insurance companies will not insure for, the simple answer is that they will not insure for risk. That has been my experience and that of all the people in Bandon to whom I have spoken. Only one person has gotten flood cover but that is because he did not claim after the last flood because his premises was not really affected.