Whaley Bridge – portfolio alert for UK lender
Whaley Bridge – portfolio alert
for UK lender
Summary
The summer of 2019 saw unprecedented rainfall of high intensity across regions of the UK, something that is likely to become more of a regular occurrence in future. One particular location affected by these events was the town of Whaley Bridge, situated downstream of the Toddbrook Reservoir. Following heavy rain, the Toddbrook Reservoir spillway was functioning as it should allowing excess water within the reservoir to flow into the River Goyt. However, the spillway soon started showing signs of erosion, which quickly led to the face of the reservoir dam becoming critically damaged. The evacuation of Whaley Bridge was then ensued in case of a dam failure.
Requirements
Our solution
Hearing the news and how this could lead to a potentially devastating outcome for the town of Whaley Bridge and further downstream, a leading UK lender wanted to understand the potential resultant risk it may be faced with, and how it could help its clients. The lender was aware that there may potentially be numerous residential and commercial properties located locally that were within their mortgage portfolio. In order to understand how the damaged dam could potentially impact its clients homes or livelihoods, D-Risk was quickly asked to undertake a risk analysis exercise.
D-Risk were able to rapidly geospatially map all properties located within the Whaley Bridge area, overlaying the potential path of destruction that would occur due to a dam failure, deluging the contents of the Toddbrook reservoir downstream. The nature and use of each property was then established so that the lender was able to establish how to best support their mortgage clients during what was an already difficult time, which could potentially further escalate quickly.
Result:
The lender was able to quickly establish the financial risk they may be faced with through the damage or loss of property, as well as the loss of trading that may occur. The lender could then communicate with all mortgage holders located within the potential impact zone to provide them with ongoing support. The evacuation of Whaley Bridge meant that many businesses were forced to cease trading. The lender was able to evaluate the potential resultant losses that may occur from this, thus allowing them to support their clients in a more dynamic way.
