Forum chairman urges insurance providers to join forces to face subsidence challenge

Subsidence Forum Chairman Paul Duddle has urged insurance professionals attending a national claims conference to join forces with other experts to tackle the challenges created by subsidence.

Speaking at the I Love Claims Property Conference in Telford, he invited insurance companies and loss adjusters to join the Subsidence Forum as a natural step to deal with an increasingly urgent issue.

He also said effective communication will be vital if the insurance claims industry is to respond decisively to the current subsidence surge, which is another good reason to share expertise within the Subsidence Forum.

Tackling subsidence together – best option

Paul, who is operations director at claims services specialist Catalyst Services UK, told hundreds of delegates at the ILC’s annual property claims conference: “Working together is the best way to tackle subsidence.

“It’s a complex issue, with many different facets, that require investigations and other decisive interventions spread over months. No one organisation has the experience or skill-sets to provide all solutions needed.

“It’s why we’d like more insurance and loss adjuster service providers to join the forum so we can pool knowledge in the most effective way. The changing nature of subsidence in the UK makes this more urgent than ever.”

Paul was joined on the panel to debate current and future trends in subsidence by Richard Rollitt, Technical Director at Innovation Group UK, and Rob Stewart, Commercial Director at Claims Consortium Group. The panel was chaired by Alan Soutar, Chair of the ILC Property Claims Committee.

Subsidence high risk area growing

There were clear signs, the conference heard, that the record dry summer of 2025 has triggered a subsidence surge, as clay soils dried out and shrank, leaving the foundations of thousands of buildings less well supported.

Members of the Subsidence Forum were also seeing a migration north of subsidence issues from the clay bands of London and the southeast, a process attributed to climate change, said Paul.

With the UK forecast to see more frequent summer droughts as an element of more volatile weather patterns, subsidence surges could become more frequent and more intense.

Improve solutions – control costs

He added: “Good communication between all parties is paramount to resolving subsidence claims. If claims are not managed effectively, with clarity, policy holders can become extremely frustrated, delays can become compounded, and robust, long-term solutions can become illusive.

“This is important because, although subsidence is currently a relatively small element of overall insurance claims spend, we’re likely to see claims volumes increase rapidly, due to climate change, and the expertise needed to manage them is in short supply.”

All parties should work collaboratively to fully understand how the current surge, and future ones, will impact claims customers, their businesses, and the wider claims industry, said Paul.

This would control costs and lead to the most effective solutions, while also providing crucial evidence to positively influence the regulatory environment.

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