Crop fire claims soar as forest fires rage through UK amid heatwave

Crop fire claims have soared over the past few weeks, according to Sedgwick.

Graham Plaister, agriculture director at the loss adjustor told Insurance Times that it had been receiving claims for crop fires as well as heat stress claims for intensive livestock units: “We are seeing heat stress claims for livestock units as well as crop fires, as the land is so dry.”

The recent heatwave caused forest fires across the UK with Shirley Hills, Croydon and Pea Lance in Upminister both being hit last week (19 July 2022) as temperatures soared to over 38 degrees in some areas.

Plaister continued: “Farmers were well prepared as they knew that this heatwave was coming and – where possible – they have moved livestock or installed fans to keep the animals from overheating.

“Also, livestock had time to acclimatise to the increasingly high temperatures over the course of the last few weeks.”

Reviewing livestock management

Plaister explained the Sedgwick’s agriculture and rural adjusters have been in contact with agents, brokers and key policyholders to provide support and to check that farmers and producers are doing all they can to mitigate claims.

However, he added that every year in the summer the sector see claims caused by weather events – either heat or storm – and so is well prepared for these types of claims when they occur.

Plaistow warned: “Farmers will also need to continue to review how they manage their livestock and land during extreme weather periods and instigate changes to help protect them from future weather events.

“There are also the physiological effects on human, livestock and wildlife health and so we need to all we can as an industry to try and minimise the number of heat related claims in the future.”