Insurance claims to rise due to bad weather

The motoring group, the AA, has recently said that vehicle insurance claims are set to soar as a result of damage caused by bad weather. During the winter months there are usually increases in vehicle insurance claims, as many people are involved in accidents due to the ice and snow on the roads. 

However, the AA says that further increases in insurance claims are set to result from the damage caused to the roads in the bad weather. Over recent weeks, where temperatures have fallen to their lowest in December for over a century, the roads in the UK have sustained severe damage, with many areas having to cope with huge potholes on the roads.

The potholes have come about due to water seeping under the road surface and then freezing, which then loosens the tarmac. This is then made worse by traffic driving over the loosened tarmac, which turns it into a pothole. These potholes have resulted in many drivers sustaining huge amounts of damage to their vehicles.

Often the damage sustained to vehicles involves the suspension, the bodywork, and the wheels, and one driver had to put in a claim for £14,000 after hitting a pothole, losing control of his car, and then crashing it. According to the AA drivers need to be very careful at present, as local authorities are still in the process of trying to repair the potholes.

The AA said: “It is really important that drivers keep a sharp eye out for potholes and keep their speed down, particularly on secondary roads, remembering that in wet weather deep potholes may be obscured by water. Cuts in road maintenance budgets of 20% mean that local authorities face very difficult choices on the roads they prioritise for repair. While they may fix the dangerous potholes, many are likely to go unrepaired.”

Tags: surface, group, motoring group, AA drivers, pothole, insurance claims, Depressions, maintenance budgets

Increase in insurance claims from gap year students

According to a recent report there has been a marked increase in the number of insurance claims being made by gap year students. One insurance firm has reported that the number of claims that are being made by gap year students on their travel insurance policies has leapt by more than half compared to a year earlier.

EssentialTravel.co.uk. which provides travel insurance, said that from December of last year and May of this year the number of claims on its backpacker insurance policy had increased by over 61 percent compared to the same period a year earlier. Just over 52 percent of claims were down to medical expenses, and over 18 percent were for personal effects according to the insurance firm’s figures.

More than half of the claims that were made originated in Asia and Australia, and officials said that this was due to the fact that regulations in these destinations regarding dangerous sports was more relaxed than in many other destinations. The higher claims for personal effects were put down to backpackers often travelling with costly items such as cameras, laptops, and similar high value gadgets.

The group also pointed out that the value of the claims being made by gap year travellers had increased over the past year, rocketing from £77 per claim to £584 per claim, which reflected an increase of 658 percent.

Stuart Bensusan, of EssentialTravel.co.uk, said: “It is unnerving, particularly for parents, to hear that claims from backpackers encountering mishaps abroad are on the rise, but it goes to show how important it is for them to take out adequate insurance before they leave. Preparing for a gap year abroad is arguably the most exciting time in a young person’s life and nobody wants to think about the potential pitfalls.”

Tags: dangerous sports, insurance claims, finance, group, travel insurance, fact, Insurance, gap year

Claims figures show BMW drivers not worst on road

According to a recent report many motorists think that the worst drivers on the road are those that drive BMWs. However, recently released figures relating to insurance claims have suggested that this is not the case. Read more

Tags: car insurance, respondents, rush hour drivers, car accident, bmws, area, insurance claims, Ford

Recession causes insurance fraud to soar

According to a recent report the level of insurance fraud has been rocketing as a result of the bleak financial climate and the recession. A report was recently released by the Association of British Insurers, and officials from the ABI have said that in 2008 the number of attempts to defraud insurance companies increased by 17 percent compared to 2007. Read more

Tags: report, road, insurance fraud, insurance cheats, Recession causes insurance, insurance claims

Increase in burst pipe claims due to colder weather

Recent reports have shown that the colder weather that has been seen in areas of the UK over recent weeks is resulting in a double whammy for many consumers. Read more

Tags: cold weather, level, insurance official, Heating, insurance providers

People who lie on insurance claims ‘will be found out’

People who try to make fraudulent claims on their insurance are likely to be caught out, according to a financial expert. Read more

Tags: insurance fraud, Aviva Canada, fool, finance, financial expert, insurance claims, Financial economics, voice

Nearly 2m pet insurance claims made by consumers

Up to 1.8 million pet insurance claims are made per year by owners according to research from Sainsbury’s Bank.

A further 18,000 claims are made for reasons including when a pet is lost or stolen.

Sainsbury’s warns that as many as 75 per cent of cats and dogs are not insured and as a result estimates that 5.5 million treatments are paid for by owners.

Claire Moyles, pet insurance manager at Sainsbury’s said: “The pet insurance industry not only deals with a huge volume of cat and dog claims every year, it deals with a staggering breadth of ailments and problems.”

She added that insurance can be more useful than expected as events when you need to claim could be “more common than you wish to consider”.

The estimated cost of owning a cat and a dog is £7,200 and £9,000 respectively while vet fees make up 19 per cent of the annual spend on dogs and 21 per cent for cats.

Meanwhile, Sainsbury’s Bank has also reported that the UK has seen an upsurge in the number of property damage claims in the wake of the recent bad weather.

Tags: United Kingdom, insurance claims, annual spend, cent, result, sainsburys, cat, Nectar loyalty card

Halifax: Bonfire night can pose risk to pets and home

Home and pet owners are urged to ensure they are properly covered with Bonfire night fast-approaching.

Many people hold private parties and are often unaware of the risks they are exposing their guests and themselves to when providing bonfire and firework entertainment.

Vicky Emmott at Halifax General Insurance explained that the presence of “explosives” means there is more potential than any other time of the year for “terrible accidents”.

“It is important to double check your insurance to ensure you are covered for fire damage to property, personal liability, and garden damage,” she continued.

“Those with cats and dogs may also want to consider pet insurance to protect their furry friends from the potential dangers of Bonfire Night.”

Research by Halifax has revealed that nearly 6 million people in the UK use lethal accelerants to get their bonfires going quickly, posing extreme health and safety risk to those present.

Post Office Home Insurance found that the most common insurance claims resulting from November 5th include, fires spreading to outhouses or homes, smashed windows, garden damage and personal liability for injury to guests or neighbours.

Tags: terrible accidents, common insurance claims, Fireworks, safety risk, cats and dogs, health, personal liability, insurance claims

Financial fraud sees continued upwards trend

Recent data for the end of the third quarter shows that fraud is still on the increase.

According to CIFAS fraud prevention service, there has been a rise in the majority of the different areas of financial fraud.

Cases of application fraud for the aquiring of credit, insurance or other products, was up by 23 per cent with a total of 57,321 cases uncovered members of CIFAS.

Asset conversion and facility takeover cases showed sharp increases in the first three quarters of this year compared to the same period in 2006, at 24 per cent and 34 per cent.

Meanwhile, false insurance claims rose by nearly nine per cent in the same period.

Chief executive of CIFAS, Peter Hurst, commented on the findings: “Our statistics for the first three quarters of the year show a clear and worrying trend. Fraudulent activity is at an all-time high.

“Fraudsters are becoming more sophisticated and fraud departments are working harder than ever to protect their organisations from the onslaught.”

CIFAS members prevented financial losses valued at £1,900 per minute this year, compared with £1,400 per minute last year in the same period.

Tags: insurance claims, rise, false insurance claims, finance, prevention service, high, chief executive