The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has warned that changes to the UK’s planning processes could result in a rise in uninsurable building projects.

The ABI is concerned that the reforms will encourage building in flood risk areas, making flood insurance more expensive or even unobtainable.

It says one in six properties in the UK are already at risk of flooding, and proposals to allow local planning authorities more autonomy in the planning process could lead to a rise in developments being built in flood-prone areas.

In order to circumvent the risks, the ABI has called on the UK Government to ensure its reforms include requirements for the regular publication by local authorities of any planning applications granted against the advice of the Environment Agency, and for water companies to be statutorily consulted on all development applications in flood-prone areas.

ABI Director of General Insurance Nick Starling says the association “is not convinced that the current proposals for planning reform are robust enough to prevent developments in flood risk areas”.

“The drive towards giving local communities more say about what is built and where must include safeguards to ensure that developments are not built in flood risk areas, so we can avoid a nightmare scenario of unsaleable, uninsurable and uninhabitable properties.”