Insurance industry invited to prepare for Flood Re
Flood Re, the UK Government’s scheme to pool flood risk, has invited insurers, brokers and software firms to test their processes for the reinsurance scheme before its launch in April 2016.
The “on-boarding” process is the next step in the scheme which aims to offer affordable flooding insurance cover to 350,000 high-risk households.
Participants will need to register, complete a number of tests which will determine whether the participant is ready to use the scheme and become authorised.
They will then be able to access property data and cede policies to Flood Re from April 2016.
Brendan McCafferty, chief executive of Flood Re, said: “Flood Re is one of the most significant innovations the home insurance market has ever seen. It has the potential to offer significant advantages to those industry participants who are ready for its launch in April 2016, and will help customers in areas at risk of flooding to access the competitive insurance market.
“We have been working closely with insurers, brokers, managing general agents (MGAs) and the Lloyd’s market for a number of months and getting the on-boarding process right will be critical to the success of the scheme.”
Amanda Blanc, chief executive officer of AXA commercial lines and personal intermediary, added: “The process of on-boarding will be fundamental for any organisation looking to engage with Flood Re. While it sounds dull, the fact remains that Flood Re is only capable of going live when all testing, registration and authorisation has been successfully completed.
“AXA is 100 percent behind Flood Re and would encourage all insurers, brokers and software houses to engage now so that this innovative scheme can be ready for successful launch in April 2016.”
