Property flood resilience repair grant

To be eligible:

• Your property must have been internally damaged by flooding between 19 and 25 October 2023 (Babet), or 2 and 12 January 2024 (Henk) - if your property wasn’t flooded during that period, unfortunately, your property is not eligible for the grant.
• Usually, only the property owner can apply for the grant - if you're not the property owner, you'll need to get signed permission from the property owner to manage the works on their behalf.

The grant is only available where:

• The habitable living or business areas of properties have been damaged by floodwater entering the property.
• Drying out and / or repairs to the fabric of the building have been necessary - you can still apply for the grant if your property has not yet dried out.

The owners of the following premises are eligible for the scheme:

• Residential properties where habitable internal areas of the building have been damaged by flooding.
• Businesses, including social enterprise and charitable organisation properties, where internal areas of the premises which are critical to the daily operations (not storage sheds or warehouses) have been damaged.

The following buildings are usually not eligible for the scheme:

• garages
• outhouses and storage areas
• second homes
• empty homes
• basements or cellars not used as part of the habitable or business area of a property.

If your property has previously received a Defra PFR repair grant, then they are not eligible for another PFR grant payment, unless in exceptional circumstances. 

If you think you're eligible, before applying, please read through the rest of the scheme details, and contact  floodgrant@leics.gov.uk if you have any queries.

Application deadlines:

Babet: 31 January 2025, with work to be completed by the end of April 2025.
Henk: 31 March 2025, with work to be completed by the end of June 2025.

As part of your application you will be asked to provide evidence that your property was flooded. This can include:

•    pictures of flood damage
•    pictures / videos showing water in home
•    surveys
•    insurance claim details

There is no cost to apply. The application form is separate to the flood reporting form, which you may have already submitted to us to report your flooding.

Apply for the property flood resilience grant 

What to expect after submitting your application

Once you have applied, you will receive a confirmation email and application reference.  We will then assess your application and contact you if we require any further information. 

If you commission survey or installation work prior to approval of your application, this is done so at your own risk.

If your application is approved, you will be notified by email and provided with a grant agreement. 

A property survey is required. This must be carried out by a qualified surveyor who is independent from the company that installs the measures. The surveyor should assess risk and recommend potential measures.

The scheme covers costs of up to £800 (VAT inclusive) for surveys, from the £5,000 total - any additional cost would need to be met by the property owner.

Survey costs will not be reimbursed until measures have been installed. Survey costs will not be reimbursed if no PFR measures are subsequently arranged.

Property owners are required to arrange their own survey. The Council is not able to endorse any company offering surveys, but can confirm the following companies have appropriately qualified and experienced surveyors to meet the requirements of this scheme. 

• Aegaea: email enquiries@aegaea.com  or call 020 8156 607
• FPS Environmental: email enquiries@fpsenvironmental.co.uk or call 0115 9902 001

The use of these surveyors is not compulsory. Property owners are welcome to search for and contract different surveyors. For RICS regulated firms in Leicestershire that list ‘flooding’, or other related matters as services, and provide residential or commercial services, depending on your property type, we would suggest using the RICS Find a Surveyor tool. 

Please also note the following:

•    Your insurer may have already arranged for a property survey.
•    Where a number of properties have flooded, communities should consider selecting the same surveyor, as this may help to keep costs down.
•    Due to the amount of flooding across the Midlands, demand for surveys is likely to be high. Make sure you discuss lead times when arranging a surveyor.
•    Ask your surveyor to include an estimation of the cost of measures they recommend.
•    Discuss your budget with your surveyor. It may be that resistance measures are likely to be too expensive, so instead they could focus on recommending recoverability measures.
•    When negotiating costs, check whether a post-installation survey is included – see step 5.
•    Check the survey will be compliant with the code of practice for property flood resilience and that the surveyor has experience of assessing flooded properties and recommending property flood resilience measures. The surveyor should always visit your property.
•    Be ready to provide as much information as possible on how the property flooded.
•    Keep your invoice and proof of payment ready for your claim

The scheme can cover costs of up to £5,000 (VAT inclusive) for installation. Any additional cost will need to be covered by the property owner.

Prior to installation, the Council must approve your contractor and the works proposed to be covered by the grant, including costs.

For resistance measures such as barriers or flood doors, Defra require that your contractor must have completed the CIWEM PFR Foundation training.

Please email these along with your property survey to floodgrant@leics.gov.uk for approval.  At this stage, the grant agreement must also have been signed and returned. Please also contact us if there are any significant changes proposed during installation.

Please also note the following:
•    Where a number of properties have flooded, communities may wish to consider selecting the same installer, as this may reduce costs.
•    Take photos before and after installation.
•    Check the design and installation will be compliant with the code of practice for property flood resilience.
•    Check which standards the products comply with (e.g. kitemark), and warranties.
•    Keep your invoice and proof of payment ready for your claim

Upon completion of measures a claim can be made for the grant. The following must be provided:

•    Evidence the agreed measures have been installed - a post installation survey from the surveyor who completed your initial survey is strongly recommended, but not compulsory.
•    Invoices for both surveys and installation works.
•    Bank details to allow payment.

No payments will be made for incomplete measures. The Council will inform you if your claim has been successful, or if further information is required. There may be a need to visit your property.

The property owner will be responsible for the ongoing management and maintenance of measures.