Angry residents blame insurance firms for U-turn on flood cover
Damien Cassidy, who chaired the Flood Distress Committee after the River Dodder burst its banks and flooded Ringsend and Irishtown in Dublin in February 2000, said insurers have been going back on their assurances that premiums would not be hiked enormously if adequate flood protection was provided.
The five-foot wall supported by metal sheet piling has been in place since early 2003. But almost two years later, many householders in the area are experiencing obstacles when it comes to getting insurance for their homes, according to Mr Cassidy.
“After numerous meetings with the major insurance companies, we were told that there would be no policy refusals or huge premiums once the protection was in place,” he said. “But we have had to bring in our own engineer to intervene in the case of at least two dozen people having difficulty insuring their homes, either being refused cover or being asked unreasonable prices.”
He said many people are afraid to sell their homes because buyers coming into the area are having difficulty securing mortgages without adequate house insurance on properties in the area. The Irish Insurance Federation (IIF) could not be reached for comment on the issue.
The IIF said last week it has paid out more than €38 million to homeowners, businesses and motorists affected by heavy flooding in parts of the country at the end of October. This was just about €1m more than the cost of claims paid out in the aftermath of the February 2002 floods.
The worst affected areas two months ago were Clonmel, and the cities of Waterford and Cork, all of which have been devastated by the effects of high tides and heavy rainfall in the past.
