Written answers

Tuesday, 13 October 2015

Department of Public Expenditure and Reform

Flood Risk Insurance Cover

Photo of Barry CowenBarry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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78. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the rationale behind the Office of Public Works's production of flood maps for flood prone areas; the reason county councillors have been asked to approve these maps; if such approval will result in increased legal liability for damage caused by future flooding in mapped areas; if the Office of Public Works has undertaken any analysis of the effect that approval of these maps will have on home insurance premiums in areas affected; and if there is an expectation that approval of these maps will have an effect on home insurance premiums. [35579/15]

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The national Catchment Flood Risk Assessment & Management (CFRAM) Programme is the principal vehicle for implementing the EU Floods Directive and forms the strategic focus of national flood policy. Local Authorities and other stakeholders are involved in the Programme, in partnership with OPW, on Steering Groups and Progress Groups across six regional studies. The Programme, which is focusing on 300, mainly urban, potentially significant flood risk areas, involves the production of predictive flood risk and hazard mapping for each location, the development of preliminary flood risk management options and the production of Flood Risk Management Plans. The Plans will be used to determine national priorities for State investment in flood defences. An OPW website, cfram.ie, provides information and updates on the CFRAM Programme.

In conjunction with a national public consultation on the draft predictive flood maps scheduled for late 2015, the draft flood maps will be made available to the county councils for their consideration following which each county council may provide observations on the maps. The county councils will not be asked to approve the maps. The flood maps, when finalised following this consultation process, are vital to inform the development of prioritised plans for both the structural and non structural solutions to manage flood risks. The maps will assist the emergency response authorities with regard to responding effectively to flood events. The maps will also be available for use as an information source for sustainable planning.

The OPW has no role or function in relation to the oversight or regulation of the insurance industry or of insurance matters generally. The provision of insurance cover, the level of premiums charged and the policy terms applied are a matter for individual insurers. Insurance companies make commercial decisions on the provision of insurance cover based on their assessment of the risks they are prepared to accept on a case by case basis.

I am aware that some insurance companies are using their own flood risk survey and mapping information as part of their risk assessment approach. The draft Flood Maps scheduled to be published later in 2015 for public consultation purposes cannot be relied upon for commercial or other decision making purposes.

When the maps are finalised, the OPW's Flood Risk Maps will provide an analysis of the number of properties, business and other public amenities that are at risk from a predictive assessment of flood risk. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the OPW and Insurance Ireland, which was signed on 24th March 2014, outlines the principles of agreement between the parties on the provision of information to insurers to facilitate, to the greatest extent possible, the availability to the public of insurance against the risk of flooding.

The Working Group established through this MOU and that includes the Department of Finance provides the forum to discuss and exchange information between the parties and the impact on flood insurance. This is the appropriate structure for the OPW to analyse any possible strategic impact to the availability of insurance cover when the flood maps are finalised.

I have recently reconvened an Interdepartmental Policy Co-ordination Committee that is due to report to the Government next Spring on the Whole of Government policy measures, including those to support availability of affordable insurance, to support the OPW's Flood Risk Management Plans arising from the CFRAM programme.

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