Homeowners across England will gain a clearer picture of their property’s flood risk under plans unveiled by the Government and Flood Re.

New Flood Performance Certificates (FPCs) will be piloted to provide clear, standardised information on flood risk and resilience, reflecting the steps taken to protect them and where further action is needed.

The goal is for FPCs to be a trusted source of information, similar to how Energy Performance Certificates are for energy. They will pilot approaches such as a ‘Flood Performance Rating’, which breaks a property’s flood risk down to categories such as exposure, characteristics and resistance. This will draw on flood risk information already available through the ‘Check Your Flood Risk’ service, covering risks such as rivers and surface water.

By helping people understand their vulnerabilities and how they can be addressed, FPCs are intended to drive greater uptake of practical resilience measures and support more climate-resilient communities. Household can invest in items, like self-closing air bricks, flood resilient kitchens and flood barriers.

To be introduced by Flood Re, work on pilots to test the certificates will start this year in areas at risk of flooding, with a growing number of pilots also taking place throughout 2027 and beyond.

Flood Re’s ambition is for app-based flood self-assessments to become routine, helping people understand their individual risk, take steps to mitigate it, and in time have these actions recognised by their insurers.

Floods Minister Emma Hardy said:

“Flooding is devastating for families and communities, and we need all households to know about their own flood risk and what can be done to reduce it.

“With our new Flood Performance Certificates, we are starting to give people the opportunity to access clear, trusted information in one place about the flood risk their home faces, so they can take steps to become even more resilient.”

Perry Thomas, CEO of Flood Re, commented:

“Flood Performance Certificates are about turning awareness into action. By helping people understand how resilient their home is, we can encourage greater investment in resilience and reduce the impact of flooding on homes across the UK.

“We’ll begin piloting FPCs in 2026, with a focus on what helps householders to understand their risk and take action. Over time, we want resilience improvements to be recognised and rewarded, helping create a future where access to affordable insurance increasingly reflects the actions people take to protect their homes.”

Flood Performance Certificate pilots welcomed by insurers

According to Jason Storah, CEO UK & Ireland General Insurance at Aviva, by 2050 a quarter of homes are likely to be at risk from flooding. Improving flood resilience of homes is critical, not only for Aviva customers, but also for insurers, developers and lenders alike.

He commented:

“Improving access to flood resilience is key to keeping insurance available and affordable to homes at risk of flooding, particularly as newer homes are not covered by the Flood Re scheme.

“That’s why we welcome the Flood Performance Certificate pilots. To ensure the scheme is a success, it’s important the industry works together with lenders and Flood Re in encouraging flood resilience, helping homeowners to get ready for the future and reducing the impacts that flooding can bring.

Robert Stevens, Nationwide’s Head of Property Risk, said:

"Flood Performance Certificates have the potential to become a really valuable tool for homeowners, lenders and insurers by providing clear, consistent information about a property’s exposure to flood risk and the steps that can be taken to improve its resilience.

"Having a standardised approach will support greater understanding of flood risk across the housing market, helping people make more informed decisions about their homes and encouraging practical measures that can reduce the impact of future flooding."

The National Flood Forum, the UK’s first national charity dedicated to flooding founded in 2002, has also welcomed the pilots.

 FPCs will aid insurers and lenders by providing access to more consistent, comparable information

Image: Artist's illustration of what FPCs could look like

Working closely with homeowners, insurers and lenders, the pilots will test how resilience information can be assessed, communicated and recognised in a way that is useful for all users.

Where homeowners take action to make their properties more resilient, such as installing flood barriers or water resilient flooring, this will be reflected in the assessment. If a property’s resilience can be improved, the certificate will make this clear and help identify where action is needed.

FPCs will aid insurers and lenders by providing access to more consistent, comparable information and support positive impact on the affordability and availability of insurance where action taken to improve flood resilience is sufficient to improve an insurers assessment of the flood risk.

Earlier this year, the government and Flood Re unveiled plans to ensure flood insurance remains fair, affordable and sustainable, while accelerating action to improve flood resilience across the nation.

This includes more than halving premiums for contents cover policies in Council Tax Bands A and B, to £25, from April 2027. The change is intended to support lower-income households and renters, with insurers expected to pass these savings on to customers.

WaterBriefing is supporting the upcoming Floodex & National Drainage Show which takes place in London on 25– 26 November 2026 in London. Now in its eleventh year, Floodex will run alongside the National Civils Show.  Between them the events are set to welcome thousands of civil engineers, contractors, developers and planners, involved in construction, utilities, highways, railway and coastal defence professionals.

Click here for more information and to register for your free ticket to attend Floodex/National Drainage Show/Waterways Management

Click here to register for your free ticket to attend the National Civils Show