What steps is the Welsh Government taking to support leaseholders in buildings of over 18 metres facing rising insurance costs as a result of fire safety issues?
The issue of individual leaseholders facing rising insurance costs is unfortunately an issue which Welsh Government have no power in. We have pushed the UK Government hard on this and continue to do so to drive change where possible.
Welsh Government has been in discussions with the Association of British Insurers (ABI) on this matter. The ABI are of the strong view that the ultimate solution is for the dangerous cladding to be remediated as quickly as possible, and for systems and processes to be put in place to ensure these issues cannot occur again. This should result in the risk profile of buildings improving, which in turn should increase the competitiveness of the insurance market and benefit customers through associated effects on premiums.
We have made significant progress with the removal of unsafe ACM cladding from high-rise buildings in Wales− at no cost to leaseholders. We are also developing our Welsh Building Safety Fund which will identify wider issues inherent to these buildings, which is not limited to just cladding and the support needed to remediate them but also compartmentation, fire safety and suppression systems.