Wales’ response to storms Bert and Darragh revealed gaps | UK News

Wales’ response to two “devastating” winter storms exposed “critical gaps” in emergency payments and insurance cover for victims, a review has said.

Storms Bert and Darragh in late 2024 have shown the need for an overhaul of the financial and mental health support available to people affected, according to the Senedd’s climate change committee.

Its inquiry heard from residents, councils and charities about “repeated hardship and unmet needs” after homes and businesses were damaged.

The Welsh government said it would respond to the report’s recommendations in due course.

Over a three-week period in November and December 2024, storms Bert and Darragh battered Wales.

Towns like Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, still recovering after Storm Dennis in 2020, were flooded extensively again.

The Welsh government and some local authorities issued emergency grants of £500 and £1,000 to affected households, with additional support for businesses.

But the Senedd’s climate change, environment and infrastructure committee heard repeatedly that these payments fell “far short” of covering the true cost of the damage and disruption.

Robbie Laing, who owns a furniture shop in Builth Wells, Powys, lost an estimated £15,000 in stock, earnings and clean-up costs.

“It’s the weeks and months afterwards trying to get the shop back together – that’s the biggest impact – having to close to clean up,” he said.

While the council allowed businesses to go to recycling centres for free after being flooded in 2020, he said that was not the case in 2024, so he had to pay “out of my own pocket to dispose of thousands of pounds worth of ruined stock – a real kick in the teeth when you’re trying to get back on your feet”.

He searched for grants or support available, to no avail.

Powys council said it was up to firms to “make their own arrangements to dispose of their flood-damaged stock, and most businesses will take out insurance for this purpose where possible”.

But Jackie Charlton, cabinet member for a Greener Powys, said she supported the committee’s recommendations.

“We now look to Welsh government to ensure local authorities have the resources needed to prepare for and recover from future storms,” she added.

The report referred to the findings of a British Red Cross survey, suggesting that only 5% of those affected by flooding across the UK received financial support from their local council and only 24% felt the support was adequate.

The committee recommended “a thorough review” of emergency funding to ensure it “reflects real-world costs and provides for long-term resilience”.

Access to insurance was another of the concerns raised.

Properties at risk of flooding built before 2009 generally qualify for flood insurance under the UK government’s Flood Re scheme, but the committee heard many residents and businesses struggled to navigate the system and get affordable cover.

It said clearer, more accessible communication from both insurers and government bodies was needed for people to better understand their rights.

Several contributors to the committee’s report spoke of the mental toll the storms and their aftermath took on them, especially in areas affected repeatedly.

But mental health support was not routinely integrated into flood response and recovery, they concluded.

“The wellbeing of residents must be treated with the same priority as physical infrastructure repair,” the report states.

“We recommend that mental health support be embedded in local flood response strategies and made accessible through community-based services and partnerships.”

While councils had spent heavily to repair and upgrade infrastructure in the wake of recent storms, the report found there were still issues with culverts in many places.

Too often, these channels for water that cross under roads and railways were “poorly maintained, difficult to access, and not designed for the enormous rainfall intensities now seen due to climate change”.

Local authorities were hampered by limited budgets and – because many culverts cross public and private land – there were unclear responsibilities for maintenance.

The committee urged the Welsh government to support “a national, co-ordinated approach” to culvert management.

Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd Llyr Gruffydd, who chairs the cross-party committee, said “the current emergency support, insurance coverage, and infrastructure simply do not measure up to the scale of need”.

“With climate change driving ever more extreme weather, it is essential that the Welsh government and local authorities implement our recommendations without delay.

“Overhaul emergency funding, clarify insurance access, improve mental health support, and create a coordinated approach to resilient infrastructure.

“Every day these reforms are not enacted, we risk exposing more communities to hardship and undermining Wales’s resilience to storms yet to come.”

The Welsh government said: “We thank the committee for its comprehensive report which we are now reviewing and will respond to the recommendations in due course.”