How to prepare for a flood

This Scottish Government guidance provides guidance on what you can do to prepare for a flood.

You can find out if your area is at risk of flooding from these flood maps.

You can sign up to a direct warning service. This will let you know if the property (for example your home or business) or area you're in is at risk of flooding. 

The Scottish Flood Forum provides advice and information to individuals to help protect their home from flooding or, if the worst has happened, to recover from flooding. They do this via their publications and website, via their enquiry line or where necessary, face to face.

We don’t supply or deliver sandbags to individual homes or businesses. The Scottish Flood Forum has information on creating flood defences for your home.

There is some general advice to follow in the event of a flood which will help you keep safe. Remember, you and your family are the priority:

• Please be a good neighbour and keep an eye on people around you, particularly older people, and people with disabilities or with young children. If they need help and support, contact Social Care.
• Call 999 if there is a risk to life.
• Keep safe and warm.
• Always follow the advice from the emergency services.
• Remember that flood water is contaminated.

Flood Re is a re-insurance Scheme that makes flood cover more widely available and affordable as part of your home insurance.

Flood Re helps households at the highest risk of flooding. They also provide information about taking action to reduce flood risk. Flood Re will run for 25 years, at which point insurers should be offering policies based on actual risk to property.

Build Back Better is designed to reduce the cost and impact of future floods by including property resilience measures as part of flood repairs.