£8m Beast from East hit

INSURER Esure took a big hit linked to the freak Beast from the East weather in March.

In a first-quarter trading update, it saw claims costs in its home division rocket £6m ahead of forecasts, to £8m. Nevertheless, Esure said it remains on track to achieve an operating performance similar to 2017 and well placed to deliver profitable growth in 2018.

Esure said that its gross written premiums rose 18pc to £221.2m.

It saw a 21pc increase in motor premiums to £201.4m, although home premiums fell 6.2pc to £19.8m. Total in-force policies for the quarter grew 9.2pc to 2.4m.