THE Government is being urged to offer more insurance protection for businesses when floods strike. Many small businesses in Worcestershire have been severely damaged in the current floods and with the potential of more to come in future years the Federation of Small Businesses – which represents about 2000 small firms in the county – has called on the Government to provide better insurance safeguards to flood-threatened firms.

It is pressing MPs to include businesses in a new scheme currently going through Parliament designed to protect homeowners in high flood risk areas from excessive insurance premiums. The scheme - called Flood Re – aims to ensure people living in flood-affected part of the UK can continue to find affordable flood insurance by placing a cap on the total cost they have to pay. The scheme is a key component of the Water Bill currently being discussed by MPs but business properties have not been included in the plan - and the FSB says this must change.

Rick Abbotts, FSB chairman for Worcestershire, said: “We feel is it vital that Government rethinks and includes small businesses in its Flood Re scheme. And it would obviously be a very timely and welcome thing for them to do. FSB research shows one in five small firms were affected by flooding last year alone and obviously this year threatens to be even higher. If Government doesn't add small businesses in areas at risk to this scheme many will be forced to pay exorbitantly high costs to be insured against this threat and some may struggle to do so. We therefore urge them to think again on this issue at this particularly sensitive time and we urge MPs to table amendments to the forthcoming Water Bill to make it happen.”