Lynne Jones? cozy bed and breakfast in Britain?s Lake District boasts views over the River Greta where heron come to feed, and a panoramic vista of Skiddaw mountain.
Jones says her B&B has another virtue: It?s practically watertight. In an island nation where some 920 homes have flooded and at least three people have died in the past few days, that?s saying something.
?It?s almost an ark,? she said. ?Short of actually letting it float, we?ve done everything we can to protect it.?
But the floodgates and other fixtures Jones installed haven?t led to lower insurance premiums. And things may get worse, as the British government and British insurers battle over a deal that would provide state guarantees for flood coverage at a time when losses are expected to rise because of global warming.
With more storms on the way, the government and the insurance industry are engaged in mutual finger-pointing. Insurers say the government is failing to provide homeowners the type of guarantees that other European countries and the U.S. do, while the government is accusing the industry of whipping up people?s fears by publicizing its negotiating position even before flood waters have receded.
If a deal isn?t struck by the end of June, as many as 200,000 people in Britain could either lose their insurance or find it too expensive to pay premiums that are certain to rise without government guarantees.
All this comes as the European Environment Agency reported that global warming has caused an overall rise in sea levels globally and along most of the region?s coasts. There has also been an increase in flooding along streams and rivers.
Sources: Euro News, Sky News, BBC, AP?
? Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney is promising to get tough on China to help America?s workers, but his plans could backfire. ? Romney is pledging, on his first day in office, to ...
READ MORE ? Portugal?s government is taking the bailed-out country deeper into austerity, announcing on Monday sharp tax increases next year that risk worsening a recession and stoking public discontent. The draft budget for ...
READ MORE The father of a 15-year-old Pakistani girl shot in the head by the Taliban described his daughter's survival and ongoing recovery as miraculous Friday, and said her shooting was a ...
READ MORE Cinema is one area in which it can be argued that China still lags behind the US. For decades Hollywood has extended American 'soft power' way beyond its shores and now ...
READ MORE Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday shot back at visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel for raising questions about the imprisonment of the Pussy Riot punk provocateurs, suggesting she was poorly ...
READ MORERomney seeks more assertive US policy on China
Portugal unveils more harsh austerity in budget
Shot Pakistani girl?s father happy for ?miracle?
Hollywood giving edge to US over China
Merkel, Putin meet amid tension over rights issues
Did you like this? Share it:
Random posts
Tags: UK floodSource: http://cruxof.com/2012/11/28/floods-in-britain-highlight-insurance-dispute/
delmon young dallas mavericks washington capitals amare stoudemire tallest building in the world the pitch brandon inge
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.