Property insurers paid out £4.86bn to personal and commercial policyholders in 2023, according to the Association of British Insurers. It said £2.55bn was for home insurance claims, representing an increase of almost 10% on 2022 (£2.33bn), which was largely driven by weather-related damage. Across personal and commercial policies, weather-related damage totally £573m – the highest on record.

Louise Clark (pictured), policy adviser at the ABI said: “Extreme weather events may not feel so rare as they used to as we grapple with a changing climate. Insurers continue to be there for affected homeowners, with payouts hitting record levels after a particularly difficult autumn and winter with seemingly countless storms, from Agnes onwards leading to significant flooding.

“While insurance will continue to protect homeowners and businesses, we can’t afford to lose momentum on our flood defence programme, and 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.”