Flood exposure by county — England 2026
The Gera Flood Exposure Score (GFES, 1–10) ranks 151 English counties by the number of Environment Agency flood warning areas. Higher score = greater flood monitoring density = higher relative flood exposure. Data from the EA Flood Monitoring API (OGL v3.0), June 2026.
Which county in England has the highest flood risk, and how is flood exposure measured?
North Yorkshire has the highest Gera Flood Exposure Score (GFES 10/10), with 238 Environment Agency flood warning areas — more than any other English county. The GFES is a 1–10 index of EA-monitored flood warning area density by county, based on Environment Agency open data (OGL v3.0), last updated June 2026.
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| County | GFES | Risk band | EA flood areas |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Yorkshire | 10/10 | Very High | 238 |
| Greater London | 8/10 | Very High | 178 |
| Lancashire | 8/10 | Very High | 192 |
| Lincolnshire | 8/10 | Very High | 182 |
| Devon | 7/10 | High | 156 |
| Hampshire | 7/10 | High | 171 |
| Derbyshire | 6/10 | High | 136 |
| Nottinghamshire | 6/10 | High | 127 |
| Dorset Council | 5/10 | Moderate | 119 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 5/10 | Moderate | 106 |
All 151 counties — GFES rankings
Frequently asked questions
- What is the Gera Flood Exposure Score (GFES)?
- The GFES is a 1–10 index measuring the density of Environment Agency flood warning areas per English county. Counties with more EA-monitored flood zones score higher. It is computed from the EA Flood Monitoring API (OGL v3.0) and normalised so North Yorkshire (the highest, with 238 flood areas) scores 10.
- Which county has the highest flood risk in England?
- According to the Gera Flood Exposure Score, North Yorkshire has the highest flood exposure (GFES 10/10) with 238 Environment Agency flood warning areas. Lancashire (GFES 8) and Lincolnshire (GFES 8) also rank very high. Data: EA Flood Monitoring API, June 2026.
- Does a high GFES mean my home insurance will be more expensive?
- A high GFES indicates that the county contains many EA-designated flood risk zones. Insurers consider proximity to watercourses and flood zone classification when pricing home cover. However, GFES is a county-level metric — individual property risk can be much higher or lower. Always check your specific address using the free EA Long Term Flood Risk service.
- How often is the GFES updated?
- Gera re-fetches the Environment Agency Flood Monitoring API monthly. The EA updates its flood warning area boundaries as new evidence emerges (typically following seasonal reviews). The dateModified in the Dataset JSON-LD on each page reflects the last real data refresh.
- Does the GFES cover Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
- No — the EA only manages flood risk in England. Scotland (SEPA), Wales (NRW) and Northern Ireland (DAERA) have separate bodies. The GFES covers 151 English counties only.
- Is this the same as Flood Zone 2 or 3?
- No. Flood Zone 2/3 is a spatial classification from the EA's "Flood Map for Planning" that requires geospatial processing of polygon data. The GFES is computed from the simpler (and live, key-free) flood warning area count API. The GFES is correlated with Flood Zone coverage but is not identical.
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Contains public sector information published by Environment Agency and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Environment Agency Flood Monitoring API — Flood Warning Areas (June 2026, published 20 June 2026).
The GFES is a county-level density index — it does not replace an individual property flood risk check. Use the free EA Long Term Flood Risk service for property-level assessment.