Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions she has had with the insurance industry on ensuring that premiums for homeowners do not increase substantially.

Treasury Ministers and officials have regular meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors on an ongoing basis.

Insurers make commercial decisions about pricing and the terms of cover they offer based on their assessment of the relevant risks. This is usually informed by the insurer’s claims experience and other industry-wide statistics. The respective capabilities of insurers to assess risk is a key element on which they compete and the Government does not intend to intervene in these commercial decisions as this could damage competition in the market.

However, the Government is determined that insurers should treat all customers fairly and insurance companies are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) rules. The FCA is an independent body responsible for regulating and supervising the financial services industry. The FCA monitors firms to make sure they provide products that are fair value, and, where necessary, it will take action.