Finding a way to make flood insurance universally available to the community at an affordable price is at the top of the Insurance Council of Australia's (ICA) agenda this year.

Mr Mason told the council's NSW conference he hopes he’s “well and truly retired by the time the next big flood hits”, because a solution needs to be found quickly.

He admitted ICA’s latest plan to attack the problem is his third shot at trying to come up with a solution. This time ICA’s tackling the issue differently and is about to discuss the issue with all levels of government in the next few weeks.

Mr Mason says international experience shows “any solution for flood must involve a partnership between industry and government”.

ICA has examined what it calls the “most comprehensive [flood insurance] solution” administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the United States.

Under this program, flood mitigation is directly linked to maps developed by FEMA, which also sets the premiums to be charged to individuals.

Local authorities or communities apply for access to the FEMA flood cover scheme and are required to meet conditions related to hazard mitigation, building standards and development approvals.

Over the past year ICA has undertaken a mountain of research looking at industry practices in covering flood, latest estimates of Australia’s exposure to riverine and coastal inundation, government activities and commitments around flood mitigation and international practices in flood cover.

Mr Mason said ICA has also made a submission to the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) identifying issues outside the industry’s control that have contributed to the flood cover problem, such as a lack of accurate flood mapping and council disclosure to residents in flood-prone areas.

“These are key issues which ICA believes need to be dealt with governments at all levels,” he said.

But he says any changes arising from the COAG report will take about three years and “I don’t think we’ve got that much time. We need a solution now.”