Coldest December caused £1bn damage to vehicles and property

The Arctic snap not only brought the economy to a grinding halt but also resulted £38m of insurance claims a day, according to new figures released by trade body the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

Insurers received a total of £1.4bn of claims during December, more than double the £650m relating to the snowy weather the previous year.

The amount of damage was so high because of the severity of the weather which engulfed nearly all the country for an extended period of time, said the ABI.

Insurers dealt with property claims totalling £900m during the month – the highest ever caused by a cold snap.

Scotland, which was subjected to particularly cold conditions as temperatures fell as low as minus 20C in some parts, reported £90m of damage to property.

Burst pipes caused more damage than any other problem and were responsible for £680m claims, or 35 per cent more than in the whole of the previous winter. There were more than 100,000 incidents of problems with pipes, which caused damage amounting to an average of between £6,500 and £7,200.

More than a quarter of a million vehicles were damaged as icy conditions made the roads dangerous and helped cause £530m damage.

The ABI’s director of general insurance and health, Nick Starling, 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’s no substitute for insurance.”

He said that although the past two winters had been costly for insurers, the industry would do all it could to ensure the market remained competitive for consumers.

A spokesman said there was no evidence that premiums had gone up as a result of the cold weather but said insurers always looked at the cost of claims when setting prices.