How much does it cost to flood-proof a house?

The honest answer: it depends on your house, and the only official cost figures are well out of date. Here's what they say, what changes the price, and how to get a real number for your home.

There's no current official price list

GOV.UK's advice on protecting your property doesn't give prices. It points you to the National Flood Forum for advice on what protection might cost. We couldn't find any current official cost range for a home, so we won't make one up.

What official reports found (old prices)

The most detailed official figures are in a March 2015 Environment Agency evidence report. It quotes prices from 2008 and 2009, so treat them as a rough guide to the relative cost of different approaches, not today's prices.

• Door guards and air bricks for the whole house, protecting against flood levels up to 900 mm: £2,000 to £4,000 (ABI, 2009 prices).
• The same plus anti-flood valves and external wall treatments: £10,000 to £14,000 (ABI, 2009 prices).
• Resilience work inside the home (resilient plaster, a resilient kitchen, raised electrics): £10,000 to £15,000 (2008 prices).
• A survey, if you pay for one yourself: about £1,000 (2008 estimate). Surveys done as part of a community scheme cost less per home.

The report says costs are highly variable and that a real property needs a specialist survey to price it.

What drives the cost

• How many ways water can get in: each external door, patio door, air brick, vent and drain.
• Removable or permanent: removable barriers and covers generally cost less than flood doors and self-closing air bricks, but they need someone at home to fit them in time.
• How deep floods could get, and how long the water could stay. Deeper, longer floods need more than door guards.
• Your walls and floors: some walls let water through, and sealing them is a bigger job.
• Whether you're repairing anyway: after a flood claim, Build Back Better may let you add resilience to the repairs (see below).

What it can save

Flood Re says PFR can reduce the cost of flood repairs by as much as 73% in some cases. The Environment Agency puts it at up to 70% of repair costs avoided in a significant flood, compared with a home without measures.

Help with the cost

• Build Back Better. If you claim for flood damage and your insurer offers Flood Re's Build Back Better, you may be able to add up to £10,000 of PFR to the repairs. Each insurer sets its own limit, so ask yours.
• Government repair grants (England). After some major floods, the government has offered flood-hit owners up to £5,000 each towards PFR. These are activated for particular flood events, through councils. We couldn't find one open now.

How to get a real price

1. Get a survey first. Natural Resources Wales suggests a chartered surveyor. The survey tells you which measures your home needs, so you only get quotes for those.
2. Get more than one quote for the measures it recommends, and ask whether products are Kitemark certified.
3. Find suppliers through the National Flood Forum's Blue Pages directory. It doesn't endorse what's listed.
4. Do the sums with your quotes in the estimator above: what the protection costs, and how many floods it would need to keep out to pay for itself.

FAQs

Will flood protection lower my insurance premium?

We can't say, and nobody can promise it. Ask your insurer directly what they take into account.

Why don't you show prices for products?

Prices change, and they depend on the size and fit for your home. We only show prices from official retailer feeds, with a date, and none are connected yet.