A petition by the Mail's Play Fair petition calling on home insurance providers to offer a favourable deal was today presented to the Association of British Insurers amidst reports that some insurance companies are still reluctant to insure homes built in flood hit areas.

The petition has received backing from a section of politicians but according to ABI, there was no blacklist on residents in any of the regions affected by flooding. “There is not, and never has been, a 'blacklist' by insurance companies.

Named figures supporting the petition include, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Menzies Campbell, Environment Minister Phil Woolas as did Beverley and Holderness MP Graham Stuart, Hull North MP Diana Johnson and Hull West and Hessle MP Alan Johnson. Last June, the rising flood waters destroyed possessions, wrecked kitchens and ruined carpets in thousands of homes leaving them uninhabitable. But with so many people affected the workload on builders and insurance companies has been huge and has seen repairs drag on for months and months.

Now as the Government commissioned report into the flooding across the country, is made public its author, Sir Michael Pitt, has also called for action. He said: “I want to see more done, I think the one thing that really sticks in my mind and continues to concern me is the fact several thousand families are still displaced from their homes and I think it's very hard to appreciate the degree of hardship that is involved.”

ABI says that members received four years of weather-related insurance claims in just eight weeks. The insurance body has also called on the Government to do more to protect people's homes against the risk of future flooding. This is essential to enable insurance companies to continue to offer competitively priced flood insurance.

ABI says that they dealt with more than 130,000 domestic claims, including 17,000 people who were not able to live in their homes, with the total insurance bill exceeding £3bn. According to ABI, it has been widely recognised that last year was the biggest emergency operation in peacetime Britain, and the insurance industry played a crucial part in helping Britain recover.

However, the petition to be presented today formed part of the our Play Fair campaign, which was launched last August after a Mail investigation revealed how insurance firms had blacklisted our region, following the June 25 floods. More than 100 signatures were added within a day the petition being launched, and since then more than 500 people have logged onto the Mail's website to add their names too.

Since launching the petition, the Mail has taken up the fight for several residents affected by problems with insurers. They included Tony Peterson of Seaton Road, Hessle, who was told by his insurer Rias they would not renew his policy after his home was flooded,

The decision left Mr Peterson facing four months without any cover while his existing claim with Rias was completed, because other insurers do not take on new customers while there is an outstanding claim with another company.

Mr Peterson formally appealed against the decision, only to be told by Rias, who are part of, The Fortis Group, the “decline in cover still stands.” However, according to reports, after the Mail intervened Rias were made to play fair and offered him a new quote.