Industry News from Yes Insurance

Norwich City Council is coming under fire after the release of a report which suggests thousands of people are living in sub-standard housing.

Council homes in Norwich, Norfolk, have not been brought up to standard and the council stands accused of failing to meet targets to improve and regenerate housing stock in the city.

More than one in three homes in Norwich fail to meet minimum requirements under the government's Decent Homes Standard, reports the Norwich Evening News.

Norwich City Council is required by law to ensure that all of its dwellings "are in a reasonable state of repair", "have modern facilities and services" and "provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort" by 2010.

"I have been told that our stock is fairly comparable with stock in other areas of the country… However, we do realise there is a lot of work to do to improve both the quality, as well as the quantity, of our affordable housing," said Julie Wesmacott, Norwich City Council's executive member for housing.

All households should be covered by home insurance, including those which are lived in by council tenants, and provisions can be made in some policies for sub-standard housing.

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