Revealed: Top reason for home insurance claims last year – is your property vulnerable?

Two out of five claims made were due to water damage, according to claims data from Peopl Insurance, which provides insurance through credit unions.

Leaks from household appliances are a major of the feature of the water-­damage claims.

Overall, burst pipes and water leaks accounted for 41pc of claims made to Peopl Insurance.

This was followed by storm and flood damage, which made up 20pc of house insurance claims last year.

The high level of claims for storm and flood damage is a reflection of more extreme weather conditions, insurance experts said. Fire accounted for 11pc of claims.

“The figures are evidence of the toll that bad weather is having on homes across the country,” Peopl Insurance spokesman Paul Walsh said.

“Towards the end of 2023, Ireland experienced a series of back-to-back storms, with a total of nine storms hitting Ireland in the last four months of 2023.”

He said the flooding and destruction left in the wake of these storms is becoming common.

“It is no surprise to us that storms now account for one in five of home insurance claims – and are the second most common reason behind home ­insurance claims today.”

Mr Walsh said that as well as the violent storms that have battered the country in recent years, Ireland has had its share of freezing weather – and it is then that burst pipes often arise.

Homeowners should not underestimate the extent of the damage that can be caused by this, he added.

“A burst pipe could cost tens of thousands of euro worth of damage if water is left running for a few days,” he said.

“The bill for the damage could even be more if a pipe bursts while you’re away as you’ll likely have to replace plasterboard, walls, wardrobes, kitchen units and so on – and you’ll probably have to repair electrical damage too.”

He said the damage caused by storms and fire can also be substantial.

“This all highlights the importance of home insurance – as without it, many homeowners could face sky-high repair bills, which they might not be able to afford,” Mr Walsh said.

Losses due to accidental damage accounted for 5.5pc of claims, with subsidence coming in at 4.5pc of claims.

Oil damage made up 4pc of claims, while theft was behind just 3pc of claims.

Peopl Insurance warned homeowners to avoid being underinsured. This is when the sum insured on an insurance policy is less than the cost of rebuilding or repairing the home and its contents.

The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland said recently that homeowners may need to adjust their insurance premiums as house rebuilding costs have spiked.

And the Central Bank has told insurers to make sure their policyholders are not underinsured.

Mr Walsh said: “While there have been huge improvements in the area of underinsurance in the last 24 months, as a result of new rules brought in by the Central Bank, we still continue to see a significant number of instances where people simply underestimated the value of their home and the contents within.”

He said that in many cases, people do not re-evaluate their sum insured for many years, meaning that increases in building costs and improvements made to the home over the years are not factored in.