Sainsbury’s Finance has revealed that there has been a significant fall in the number and value of home insurance claims this year.

According to the Sainsbury’s Home Insurance Claim Index – which tracks the volume and value of claims on a six month basis – insurers received 373,000 claims for the first half of 2009, compared 527,200 claims for same period last year.

The average size of home insurance claims has also fallen to £735, which is £183 less than the average claim in 2008.

The index indicates that the main reason for the difference between these two periods is because many home insurance claims were as a result of storm damage in 2008, as almost 16 per cent of claims last year were for storm damage compared to just eight per cent this year.

In March 2008, the average claim for storm damage totalled £460, which fell by 80 per cent to £93 in March this year when the weather was not as severe.

Commenting on the findings, Lucy Hunter, Sainsbury’s home insurance manager, said: “Our index shows the huge impact adverse weather conditions can have on the number and value of home insurance claims made.

“The first quarter of 2008 brought particularly severe conditions, and storm damage in that quarter accounted for 21.8 per cent of all claims made.”

Other claims that fell in 2009 included accidental damage claims, which accounted for 12 per cent of all claims made, representing a 3 per cent fall, while claims for theft fell by half a per cent to 14.8 per cent.

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