Claims over floods to 'top £2bn'

Flood warnings remain in place for part of the UK

The flooding of June and July is expected to cost the insurance industry at least £2bn, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) has said.

"It could well be our biggest year so far," said a spokeswoman for the ABI, which has put June's cost at £1.5bn.

Calls to insurance firms have soared in recent days, as thousands of homes have been damaged and lost power amid floods in central and western England.

The ABI said finding homes for those affected was a priority.

Claims

The association has based the £2bn figure on estimates regarding individual claims to date.

But it added that until it had a better estimate of the number of total claims, it would not be able to give a more specific figure.

"That will probably take a few more days, as many people probably haven't even claimed yet," it said.

The estimated £1.5bn cost from flooding in June came after parts of central and northern England were flooded.

Some insurers have warned that response times to this latest set of floods will be delayed because of the higher number of calls.

Direct Line said service would be "slower than normal", adding that the average time for claims assessors to pay visits to policyholders would be five days.

The ABI reiterated its commitment to insure those in areas prone to flooding, provided the government continued to improve and look after flood defences in such areas.