Storm Doris whips up major surge in UK insurance claims
The trail of destruction left by the UK's largest storm of the year has led insurers to anticipate a spike in claims. One provider has already reported a 300% increase in claims, according to London's City A.M. Last week, Storm Doris lashed the country with rain, snow and winds of more than 100 mph. Buildings and contents insurance firm Together Mutual estimated claims would average at about £700 ($870), while Aviva said it has already seen a 70 percent increase in phone claims. The UK's farmers were also badly affected, with farm insurer NFU Mutual saying it expects over 1,000 claims. 

Storm Doris: Insurers reveal a spike in claims after the UK’s worst storm of 2017 makes landfall

The insurance sector has started to count the cost of the 100mph plus gales that have lashed the British Isles over the last few days.

Storm Doris has led to a spike in activity for insurers, primarily in relation to land and buildings cover, with one provider saying it had already seen a 300 per cent increase in claims.

"Storm damage is generally high volume and low value. However, there are always exceptional cases where the costs are considerable. The overall average cost is likely to be around £700 per claim," said Vikki Roberts of Together Mutual Insurance.

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Meanwhile, Aviva was hoping its phonelines were not affected, especially as the firm's claims director Rob Townend said it had already seen a 70 per cent increase in telephone calls as a result of "mainly for loose roof tiles, broken glass and fallen trees".

Co-op Insurance said earlier this week that it was expecting as many claims over the two day period the storm straddled as it has received so far this year.

Farming

As is often the case, Britain's farmers are likely to be hit hardest by the inclement weather.

NFU Mutual pinpointed the worst hit areas. “Based on what we are hearing from our network of offices across the UK, the worst damage is across the Midlands, North Wales, Northern England and Scotland,” said NFU Mutual rural affairs specialist Tim Price.

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Price added it was too early to know the exact cost of the storm and said NFU Mutual is expecting more than 1,000 claims from farmers.

He added: “Claims reported so far include a roof torn off a large sheep shed, together with many reports of damage to the roofs of homes and commercial buildings along with property and vehicle damage caused by fallen trees."

The top 10 windiest areas of the UK

Rank Area 1981-2010 annual average wind speed (in knots) 1 Shetland Area 14.7 2 Buteshire 14.5 3 Orkney Area 14.3 4 Caernarvonshire 12.9 5 Western Isles 12.6 6 Argyllshire 12.1 7 Anglesey 11.9 8 Inverness 11.8 9 Peeblesshire 11.3 10 Ross and Cromarty 11.3

Back in the capital, Londoners were all too aware of the blustery conditions, as they struggled to cope with the fierce winds rattling between high-rise buildings.

Read more: Car smashes into City branch of Pret a Manger

One City worker (RSA chief executive Stephen Hester) told City A.M. yesterday:

It’s jolly blowy out there. It’s an interesting day for an insurer to be reporting results.

Meanwhile, rumours circulated as to whether inclement weather conditions could have been a contributory factor in an incident in the early hours of Friday morning that saw a car catapulted into one of the Square Mile's favourite coffee outlets.

Staff at the Cullum Street branch of ubiquitous sandwich chain Pret A Manger were shocked to see a car had smashed through the glass entrance of the outlet when they turned up to work this morning.

Witnesses told City A.M. a speeding truck hit the car, sending it flying through the front of coffee house. They speculated gusty gales could have caught the driver out.