Zurich reveals that it paid out almost £2 billion worth of UK claims in 2016

Zurich paid out almost £2 billion in UK claims payments during the course of 2016.

The insurer said that it dealt with 220,000 new claims in total, down from 260,000 in 2015. Just over half of the claims were made by motor policyholders. It also revealed that it received 4,000 new protection claims last year.

Over 99% of all general insurance claims were paid, with 130 claims of more than £1 million being made. 94% of consumer home claims were also paid out which was above the 84% average posted by the ABI. Within its life product suite, Zurich said that it handled 4,000 new protection claims. IT met 90% of critical illness, 85% income protection and 98% life retail claims in 2016.

Zurich’s UK CEO Tulsi Naidu said: “Releasing this information helps break the belief that insurers try and shirk their responsibilities. We are proud of our claims record, and paying out £2 billion in one year is a significant amount. It also firmly underlines the huge role we play in getting people and businesses back on their feet.”

“That such a small number of claims are declined shows the level to which customers understand what their policy covers – something we are keen to improve even further.”

The insurer said that the overwhelming reason for the lower pay out on retail home property policies was becuase some customers had made claims for wear and tear while others did not have appropriate cover in place. It said that common examples of the latter included making a claim for an accident – but not having taken out a provision for accidental damage – or claiming for damage in the garden where this isn’t part of the policy cover.

Mark Dugdale