Surveys taken by the Environmental Agency and the AA have found that 20 million drivers would take the unnecessary risk of driving through flood water.

The Ennvironemental Agency has teamed up with the AA to urge drivers to not take risks during flood warnings, they are using the hashtag #floodaware to help. This comes after 19,000 AA members took part in a survey created by Populus, which gave some shocking results.

Despite the devastation of the flooding last January, the survey says that more than 2/3 of men and 1/2 of women would actually risk driving through flood water. It only takes a foot of flood water to carry a car, it is thought that these people don’t realise how dangerous flooding is.

60% of all drivers are still willing to risk driving through flooded area even after the wettest January on record set this year (2014).

East Midlands with Most Car Rescues

The list even goes on to name some the highest risk roads in the country, with Rufford Lane in Newark, Nottinghamshire taking the winning spot with 96 flood related rescues in just 5 years. Spots in Leicester and Berkshire are also in the top 20 list announced by the AA.

The survey has almost unsurprisingly revealed that people in the East Midlands, of which Leicester and Nottingham reside in, are the most likely to drive through flood water. Drivers in London are the least likely to drive through flood water.

All of the top 20 flood rescue areas were found in England, 12 were located at fords. Since 2009 there have been 21,687 flood rescues, accidents happen every year because people do not heed the warnings. On Christmas Eve 2013 there were 642 rescues in one day, the most ever recorded, that same day the Environment Agency had announced 450 flood warnings and alerts, that urged drivers to check the flood risk of their journey before leaving anywhere.

The AA’s Advice

“During last winter, which was the wettest on record, we alone attended around 4,400 flood-related call-outs but many were completely avoidable.” says Darron Burness, head of the AA’s flood rescue team.

“Some people don’t fully appreciate the dangers posed by flood water. Fords catch a lot of people out. Just because it’s a designated crossing point, don’t assume that it’s always safe to cross – the depth of the water and its flow rate can quickly change with the weather.”

He warned drivers that: “Just one foot or 30 centimetres of moving water can float your car, so if you’re at all unsure of the conditions, turn round rather than risk your vehicle being swept down river.”

To be safe from flood risks while driving follow Mr. Burness’ advice. We have a series of advice on our oh-publicservices blog right now about preparing and also dealing with floods. During flood warnings we suggest you keep your car at high ground. Do not drive it through running water.

If you need help protecting your home this year we advise you buy some Hydrosacks to stop and reduce any flow of water into your property