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£1.4bn worth of insurance claims in December

Figures have shown that the freezing weather in December resulted in £1.4bn of insurance claims on property and vehicles in the UK.

This is more than twice the amount on the previous year, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

The snap was more severe, longer and affected more of the country.

Burst pipes caused the most problems, with more than 100,000 claims totalling £680m, the ABI said.

More than 250,000 vehicles were damaged as a result of the snow and ice on the roads, leading to £530m of claims.

Nick Starling, the ABI’s Director of General Insurance and Health, said: “Insurers always respond quickly to the large numbers of claims that often follow from bad weather, and helped thousands of customers get through a very tough December.

“The big freeze highlighted that when bad weather strikes there is no substitute for insurance.”

The ABI said there was no evidence that premiums had gone up as a result of the cold weather.

Figures released last month showed that the cold weather was largely responsible for the contraction in the UK economy during the final three months of last year.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .