Insurers Urged To Offer Flood Cover In Cork

Fianna Fáil has called on insurance companies to provide flood cover to households and businesses in Cork City.

TD for Cork South Central, Michael McGrath, has called on insurers to offer the cover again once major flood relief works are carried out in the city.

Deputy McGrath made the call at a meeting of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform.

"In September, the representative body for insurance companies signalled that, based on the plans they had seen for the Cork flood relief scheme, the proposed works would not reduce the risk of flooding sufficiently to allow them provide flood cover to households and businesses in Cork City," Deputy McGrath said.

"I raised this issue directly with the OPW today and I emphasised the need for the planned scheme to satisfy the concerns of the insurance sector so that flood cover can be reinstated to businesses and households. It is essential that homes and businesses in Cork City can access flood insurance cover at a reasonable cost as quickly as possible. The present situation is completely unsustainable with so many families and business owners are exposed to massive risk."

Deputy McGrath added: "Political pressure must be brought to bear on the OPW on a continuous basis to ensure this scheme progresses as quickly as possible. The tendency is for major schemes like the Cork City flood relief scheme to drag on over many years unless there is a concerted and sustained effort to move it forward. The dreadful flooding of Cork City in 2009 has been followed by a number of other serious flood events. This is likely to keep happening until a comprehensive, multi-million flood relief scheme is implemented. It is in all of our interests to get this job done quickly and to do it right."

(MH/IT)