ABI: UK flooding and storms to cost insurers £1.1bn

UK insurers will pay out £1.1bn in flood and storm claims for the period from 23 December 2013 to 28 February 2014, according to the ABI’s latest estimate.

ABI’s previous estimate, issued in January, put flood and storm losses at £426m for the period from 23 December to 8 January, but the bad weather in the UK continued well into February, adding to the bill.

The ABI’s new estimate for the period to the end of February includes a £446m bill for flood claims alone. The remainder comes from storm damage.

The insurer trade body said that the payout for flood claims was the equivalent of £6.7m a day for the affected period.

ABI director general Otto Thoresen said: “The flood waters may have mostly receded, but for many the distress of being flooded remains raw. Insurers and loss adjusters are playing a crucial role in the recovery process.

“A badly flooded property can take months to become habitable again, so insurers continue working around the clock to ensure that the drying out process is completed as quickly and as safely as possible.

“While of course this was a serious and significant bad weather event the current flood damage costs remain well below the severe floods of 2007 when insurers paid out £3bn to customers.”

Claim breakdown

According to the ABI figures, insurers have received 17,500 flood claims in total: 9,000 from homeowners, 5,400 for flooded vehicles and 3,100 from businesses.

Of the £466m of flood claims for the period to 28 February, the ABI estimates that £276m will be paid to homeowners, £149m to business owners and £22m to vehicle owners.

Flood victims have already received £27m in emergency payments from the industry.

Also, insurers have arranged temporary alternative accommodation for over 2,100 flooded households at a projected cost of £24 million.

Loss adjusters over 6,500 visits to flooded properties to assess the damage, organise emergency payments, and get drying out and repairs started as quickly as possible.

In addition to the flood claims, insurers have received 421,500 storm claims: 361,600 from homeowners, 15,200 for storm-damaged vehicles and 44,700 from businesses.