The official government report into the flooding that devastated Britain earlier this year today urged householders to ensure they have proper insurance.

Sir Michael Pitt, Chairman of the South West Strategic Health Authority, was asked by Ministers to conduct an independent review of the flooding emergency that took place in June and July this year.

It was released today with some clear messages:

* Britain was entirely unprepared for the floods
* The risk of further flooding in some parts of the country should be given the same priority as terrorist attacks or bird flu
* Millions of householders in at-risk areas should prepare themselves better by storing vital documents and possessions upstairs in plastic boxes and having a “flood kit” in the house, containing torch, batteries, mobile phones, rubber gloves and a first aid kit.

Sir Michael Pitt’s report made 87 recommendations, including 15 which he described as “urgent”, to reduce the impact of further floods in the near future.

He said: “I want to raise up the priority and importance of flood risk management nationally and locally. I think we should put this on a par with things like terrorism risk or influenza pandemic where we already have national frameworks in place to deal with these sorts of emergencies.”

And he said he was surprised by the way some people in flood-risk areas had assumed they would not be hit.

“What was surprising to me was the extent to which people, even though they are living in a flood-risk area, make assumptions that it won’t happen to them,” he said.

“There are many things that individuals can do to strengthen the resilience of their home; for example, having good insurance is an obvious thing that should be done.”

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