Tag: home insurance

Ratflation: Councils tackled 618 rodent infestations a day in 2022

  • Local authorities dealt with 225,430 residential rodent infestations in 2022 – equivalent to 618 per day
  • On average, each council spent more than £100,000 on pest control visits to homes
  • Swansea, Southwark and Birmingham councils tackled the most infestations while Eastbourne Council saw the biggest annual increase (188 per cent)
  • London faced more than 40,000 infestations in 2022 – almost one in five of all infestations

Local authorities dealt with 225,430 rodent infestations in 2022, equivalent to 618 per day, according to new research from Direct Line Home Insurance1. There has been a significant rise in residential rodent infestations in the last two years, increasing 12 per cent from 201,871 infestations (552 per day) in 2020.

The research found that each local authority spent an average of £101,044 dealing with residential rodent infestations. In total, local authorities could be spending an estimated £36 million tackling rodent infestations each year2. Almost one in five (19 per cent) local authorities provide pest control services to residents for free. For those households that don’t qualify for discounts, councils typically charged £80 for pest control related services.

Rodents can cause significant structural damage to homes by gnawing under floorboards, within stud walls and drywall linings, or by making holes in loft insulation which can cause condensation and rot in the joists.

If mice and rats chew through plastic pipes it can also lead to damp, or flooding whilst chewing through electrical cables could cause significant fire risks. Some rodents also carry diseases such as Salmonella and Listeria, which can easily spread to humans, normally through rodent urine, droppings, or by coming into contact with food preparation areas.

Table one: Local Authorities dealing with the most infestations

RankLocal Authorities20212022y/o/y change
 1City & County of Swansea15,51616,7678 per cent
 2Southwark Council8,76116,66490 per cent
 3Birmingham City Council14,464       12,736-12 per cent
 4Liverpool City Council12,03210,373-14 per cent
 5City of Glasgow7,89410,32331 per cent
 6Sunderland City Council3,2325,96885 per cent
 7Wigan Metropolitan Borough5,3824,715-12 per cent
 8North Lanarkshire Council3,469 4,46229 per cent
 9London Borough of Lambeth3,2463,64512 per cent
10Nottingham City Council4,115         3,573-13 per cent

Source: Direct Line Home Insurance 2023

The City & County of Swansea dealt with the most residential rodent infestations in 2022, a total of 16,767. Southwark Council and Birmingham were the second and third busiest councils last year, dealing with 16,665 and 12,736 infestations respectively.

Eastbourne Council saw the highest increase in rodent infestations in 2022 with 598, up from 208 in 2021 (a significant 188 per cent increase). London Borough Councils dealt with 40,768 infestations in 2022 – 18 per cent of the total for the UK.

One estimate suggests there are now 150 million rats in the UK3. Some ‘super rats’ are now resistant to traditional pest control methods and can grow to be as big as a cat.

Dan Simson, Head of Direct Line Home Insurance, said: “Mice and rats pose a real risk to the home and people’s health. They take advantage of issues like broken pipes, slipped roof tiles or holes in skirting to gain access to a property, often causing serious damage to the structural integrity of a building or belongings.

“We recommend that anyone with an infestation contacts either their local authority or an extermination service to have it taken care of professionally.” 

Ian Andrew, Chief Executive at the British Pest Control Association, commented: “Rodents are a serious public health pest and they have rapid breeding cycles, which means infestations require swift action as they can escalate quickly.

“Unfortunately, being unable to afford pest control increases the likelihood of people either ignoring infestations or attempting DIY pest control methods, which can make the issue worse and endanger other people or non-target species.

“A pest professional such as a BPCA member will have the technical knowledge and experience required to deal with an infestation quickly and safely, as well as having access to products not available to the public.

“Pest management is vital for maintaining the safety, health and wellbeing of people, so it would be great to see something in the UK like the proactive approach New York City are taking, with the appointment of a ‘rat tsar’.”

To help homeowners prevent pest invasions, Direct Line Home Insurance has provided the following five tips:

  • Keep refuse bins sealed: Avoid attracting rodents to your property in the first place by keeping all rubbish bins containing food waste properly sealed, clearing away garden waste and by using rodent safe bird feeders.
  • Keep surfaces clean: Rodents are drawn to food debris so wiping down surfaces regularly, clearing up food spillages and throwing away uneaten food will help to prevent unwanted visitors.
  • Fill cracks and crevasses: Many rodents are crafty at finding entry routes into the home. Prevent them from getting in by sealing gaps around doors and windows. Also block holes above or under the sink as many pests will use this area to gain access to water.
  • Seal food: Store food in safe and enclosed containers to prevent rodents from being tempted to visit your home.
  • Avoid clutter: Rodents love hiding in dark areas so keep the home clutter-free to remove opportunities for them to set up a home in your house.

Which? reveals best – and worst -insurance providers

NFU Mutual has been named as the UK’s best home insurance provider in Which?’s annual home insurance satisfaction survey, while More Than finished last.

A survey of 1,284 policyholders ranked insurers on levels of satisfaction and likelihood to recommend the provider. Which? experts also examined the providers’ policies in detail – inspecting 85 policy elements. The resulting customer score and policy scores for buildings and contents cover were then combined to create a ‘total score’. 

When it comes to cover, Which? found wild variations in the levels available from insurers. The top-scoring policy for contents cover – NatWest’s ‘Premier’ policy – earned a 90 per cent rating – while the lowest score, from Admiral’s ‘Admiral’ policy, was 43 per cent.

The consumer champion is advising home insurance customers to check carefully to ensure that a policy provides the level of cover they need. But, at a time when the cost of living crisis is putting huge pressure on budgets, it is also worth considering if there are unnecessary extras that could be dropped from existing policies, as small changes can lead to significant savings.

Overall, NFU Mutual fared best in Which?’s analysis. While its ‘Home and Lifestyle’ product was beaten by some other policies’ cover, the insurer received an impressive customer score of 87 per cent – propelling it to the top of the leaderboard.

With a highly impressive total score of 79 per cent, it charges no admin fees and has a single item cover limit of £7,500 (many insurers cap this at £2,000 or less). NFU Mutual was also the only provider to receive full marks from its customers for how it deals with queries. 

NFU Mutual, along with Lloyds Bank, LV, and Saga were all awarded Which? Recommended Provider (WRP) status – an award that is based on Which?’s own assessment benchmarks, plus customer scores and star ratings gathered through its regular surveys.

Lloyds Bank was praised by customers for the clarity of its policies. Last year, it launched its ‘Home Insurance Select’ range which has three tiers of cover: ‘Bronze’, ‘Silver’ and ‘Gold’.

LV’s ‘Home Insurance’ and ‘Home Insurance Plus’ policies both performed strongly, impressing Which?’s experts, and the provider received a customer score of 71 per cent. Its Home Insurance policy includes some accidental damage cover as standard – though limited to specific types of damage, such as to cables, sanitary ware, fixed glass and home entertainment equipment (the ‘Plus’ policy has wider cover as standard). It also provides optional home emergency cover of £1,000 per call-out. 

Saga (‘Plus’) pays up to £2,000 for home emergencies and will cover up to £10,000 of students’ contents when kept away from home. It received a customer score of 70 per cent. 

More Than achieved a total score of 56 per cent – the only provider surveyed not to score over 60 per cent. Its policy scores were roughly mid-table among the 58 policies we analysed – however, it had the lowest customer score in our survey – a disappointing 49 per cent. 

Some policies were not always as generous in providing cover as some customers might expect. 

Accidental damage, for example, was the most common reason customers in the survey claimed. The cover was available in all but three (of 58) policies we examined. However, only a third of the policies covered it generally as standard.

In many cases, standard cover was restricted to specific breakages – such as to pipes, cables and windows. To receive full accidental damage cover, customers may find they have to add on additional extras to their policies for real peace of mind. 

Since January, insurance companies have been prevented by the Financial Conduct Authority from offering new customers special discounted rates for home insurance, putting an end to the widespread practice of ‘price walking’. This meant customers were charged more the longer they stayed loyal to their insurer. 

One consequence of this may be higher premiums for new policies. The consumer champion is therefore urging customers to shop around to make sure they find a deal that is right for them before committing. 

Even if customers are happy with their current provider, haggling remains an effective option when it comes to trying to reduce bills. 

Jenny Ross, Which? Money Editor, said: “With different levels of cover aimed at different types of customers, home insurance can be tricky to navigate. But taking the time to find a policy that’s right for you could save you money. 

“At a time when the cost of living crisis is affecting millions of households across the country, doing your research to strip out any extras you don’t need could save you precious pounds.”

FCA acts to protect insurance customers from loyalty penalties

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has implemented a package of remedies to improve competition and protect home and motor insurance customers from loyalty penalties. This includes new rules so that renewal quotes for home and motor insurance consumers are not more expensive than they would be for new customers.

These measures address the issues identified in the FCA’s September 2020 market study, which found that millions of home and motor insurance customers lose out if they renew repeatedly with their current providers.

In 2018, 6 million loyal policy holders would have saved £1.2 billion had they paid the average price for their actual risk.

Many firms increase prices for existing customers each year at renewal – this is known as price walking. This means that consumers have to shop around and switch every year to avoid paying higher prices for being loyal.

It also distorts the way the market works for everyone.  Many firms offer below-cost prices to attract new customers. They also use sophisticated processes to target the best deals at customers who they think will not switch in the future and will therefore pay more.

The FCA’s new rules will stop firms price walking. Insurers will be required to offer renewing customers a price that is no higher than they would pay as a new customer. It is likely that firms will no longer offer unsustainably low-priced deals to some customers. However, the FCA estimates that these measures will save consumers £4.2 billion over 10 years, by removing the loyalty penalty and making the market work better.

In addition to the new rules on pricing for home and motor insurance, the FCA is also bringing in new rules to:

  • give most consumers easier methods of cancelling the automatic renewal of their policy, 
  • require insurance firms to do more to consider how they offer fair value to their customers, and 
  • require home and motor insurance firms to report data to the FCA so that it can supervise the market more effectively 

Sheldon Mills, Executive Director, Consumers and Competition at the FCA commented on the new rules: ‘These measures will put an end to the very high prices paid by many loyal customers. Consumers can still benefit from shopping around or negotiating with their current provider – but won’t be charged more at renewal just for being an existing customer.

‘We are making the insurance market work better for millions of people. We will be watching closely to see how the market develops in the future and to ensure firms continue to deliver fairer value to consumers.’

The pricing, auto-renewal and data reporting remedies come into effect on 1 January 2022. The rules on systems and controls, product governance and premium finance take effect from the end of September 2021.

Alongside today’s Policy Statement, the FCA has also published research on how incentives affect consumers’ choices, focusing on purchases of motor and home insurance made through price comparison websites. The research was undertaken to inform our approach to the new pricing rules.

The FCA will continue to monitor the market closely to ensure firms are ready to implement the pricing changes on time. The FCA will also review the effects of the remedies over the course of 2022, ahead of a full evaluation in early 2024.

Welcoming the announcement Gareth Shaw, Head of Money at Which?, said: “For far too long, insurance companies have employed sharp pricing tactics to lure in customers before hitting them with eye-watering price hikes and exorbitant premiums, so it is right that measures will finally be introduced to help put an end to these unfair practices.

“It is vital that the regulator keeps a close eye on insurance firms to ensure they don’t find new ways to exploit customers and should be ready to take further action where necessary.

“Greater transparency is still needed on what factors insurance firms are using to set prices and the FCA should carry out further work looking at whether there are other practices firms should be prohibited from using.”