General Insurance Article - The impact of Storm Emma so far

 "As Storm Emma continues to develop, it is too early to predict the full impact but the total costs for the insurance industry so far will be at least £15 million and this will rise as more snow falls.

 "Insurers are being inundated with calls. There have been 8,000 motor incidents over the last three days and home insurance claims are being made as some people's heating and hot water stops working. Frozen or weather-induced broken pipes are also resulting in an uptick in calls about house floodings. Commercial insurers may also be impacted, with some businesses potentially making business interruption claims after being forced to temporarily shut offices due to the weather.

 "The insurance industry is working hard to make sure claims are dealt with and will be prioritising vulnerable customers. The sharp rise in the volume of claims does mean that the industry is under pressure, but the workload should ease as the weather eases. A clearer picture will then start to emerge of the total cost of this cold snap to the insurance industry."