The helpline will provide individuals whose home or businesses have been affected with help and advice on any tax problems they may be facing.

HMRC says it will agree instalment arrangements where taxpayers are unable to pay as a result of the floods, and is also promising to adopt a practical approach when individuals and businesses have lost vital records to the floods.

In addition, the tax authorities are to suspend debt collection proceedings for those affected by the floods and will cancel penalties when the taxpayer has missed statutory deadlines.

ICAEW is calling on the government to take more action, saying it should offer extensions to filing deadlines to help businesses affected by flooding get back on their feet.

Peter Hollis, chair of the ICAEW practice committee, said: ‘Government should be doing all they can to help by automatically extending filing deadlines for businesses in affected postcodes, rather than on a case-by-case basis. This will make a major difference to those businesses who will need to file VAT, self-assessment and income and corporation tax returns in the next three months.’

ICAEW wants to see businesses in the worst affected areas given an extra three months to file VAT, income tax and corporation tax returns and pay the associated tax without penalties arising.

The institute also says the government should fund local authorities to suspend collection of business rates for three months while businesses get back in their feet and provide guarantees to banks to enable assistance to affected businesses on a case by case basis.

As well as help in the immediate aftermath, accountancy firm Blick Rothenberg wants the government to take longer term measures to counter future flooding threats, including establishing special tax and investment reliefs to help families and businesses affected.

Frank Nash, tax partner at Blick Rothenberg, said: ‘The government should introduce a special investment relief so that small businesses spending money improving property or creating local flood defences to withstand flooding or putting money into a local “business collective”, can obtain income tax relief on the amount of investment they make – for example, up to the equivalent Annual Investment Allowance of around £200,000 per annum per business.’

‘This should specifically include items such as dams, irrigation channels, excavations and tree plantings that would not normally qualify under the generic rules.’

Nash said the relief should be available to any kind of business, but would need to be targeted to ensure collective funding of flood defences.

‘It would also be restricted to those in qualifying zones where the Environment Agency classify them as at risk. The qualifying expenditure could be only that designed to protect real property and would be offset by higher tax receipts from the insurance sector through increased profitability,’ he said.

Additional measures proposed by the firm include a cut in the VAT charged on house repairs to 5% for homes which have been damaged; and a reduction or exemption from Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on the sale of these properties for the next few years.

Genevieve Moore, partner at Blick Rothenberg, said: ‘We hope the flood grants and business support scheme that were introduced for businesses and homeowners affected by adverse weather between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2014 will be extended to assist businesses and homeowners in these areas. This includes council tax rebates, repair and renew grants, amongst other measures.’

HMRC’s storm and flood helpline is in addition to other HMRC telephone contact numbers. The helpline is 0800 904 7900. Opening hours are Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm; Saturday and Sunday, 8am to 4pm, excluding bank holidays.

Details of flood support schemes are here

ICAEW has updated advice for businesses affected by flooding here

The ATT is calling on the government to  extend the eligibility criteria for tax relief on contributions to flood defence projects, which currently only apply to businesses. It argues that the relief should allow individual taxpayers to make contributions on a similarly tax-efficient basis. This might be done in a similar way  to Gift Aid or payroll giving.

Paul Hill, chairman of ATT’s technical steering group said: ‘We see no reason why less value should be attributed to contributions from private individuals than to those from businesses. On that basis, tax relief should be equally available on all contributions regardless of the source.’

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