Proactive Investors – Last year’s run of storms that battered Britain meant record payouts by insurers for property damage, according to the industry trade body.
Homes and businesses received nearly £4.9 billion in property insurance payouts in 2023, a figure up 18% from a year earlier, as weather-related home claims hit a record high
Weather-related home damage claims rose 36% to £573 million due to a combination of high winds, flooding and burst pipes.
Climate change was one of the reasons for the rise in bad weather, said the ABI, with the incidence of storms rising not only in the UK but across Northern Europe generally.
“We continue to press the government for further investment in flood defence and maintenance, as well as calling for changes to the planning system to discourage building where flooding might be more likely,” ABI policy adviser Louise Clark said.
The industry runs a Flood Re reinsurance programme to help insurers cover buildings at risk, but it is not available for houses built after January 2009.
Premiums for home insurance rose by 13% year on year in the fourth quarter of 2023 according to ABI data.
