It looks as if the campaign to include more leasehold properties within the government insurance rescue scheme, called Flood Re, has had some success.
The scheme has been the subject of glacially-slow negotiations between insurers and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and does not actually become effective until 2015.
The British Property Federation and other groups have been vocal in calling for it to include properties owned by landlords, leasehold properties, and expensive homes in council tax "band H" - all excluded in the earliest version of the measure.
DEFRA has now amended the Water Bill, which goes to the House of Lords next week, and it includes some leasehold properties in Flood Re. But in the case of blocks of leasehold apartments, the revised measure arbitrarily says the scheme will only apply to blocks of three or fewer apartments - so, typically, this may apply to a house converted to flats but not to a purpose built large block, for example.
The BPF is now lobbying for this figure to be raised beyond three, arguing that there is no evidence to suggested larger leasehold blocks in some flood-prone areas could have access to affordable insurance - the very purpose of Flood Re in the first place.
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