Butlin's sues insurers in £60m row over whether torrential rain that forced ... trends now
Butlin's has launched a legal battle against its insurers over whether torrential rain that forced its biggest camp to close counted as a 'storm' or a 'flood'.
It comes after the 165-acre holiday park in Minehead, Somerset, was forced to close for four days last year, after torrential rain caused severe damage to some of the rooms.
Now, a row has broken out between Butlin's and their insurers Aviva, over who should cover the £60million damage costs — and it centres on the 'ordinary English' definition of a storm.
Insurance company Aviva argues that it was a storm that caused the damage and say clauses in their agreements limit the amount paid to just £25million.
But the seaside resort chain claims they were in fact the victim of a 'flood' and will be taking their insurers to court to receive the full sum to cover the damages.
Pictured: Holiday-makers battle against a river of flood-water as they make their way around Somerset Butlin's
Insurance company Aviva argues that it was a storm that caused the damage and say clauses in their agreements limit the amount paid to just £25million
But the seaside resort chain claims they were in fact the victim of a 'flood' and will be taking their insurers to court to receive the full sum to cover the damages
Legal documents, seen by The Telegraph, show Butlins arguing that a 'named storm' had not been declared when the flooding happened and that rain was not accompanied by 'high winds'.
Aviva has yet to file a response and did not comment when approached by the newspaper.
It is understood that Aviva does not concede there needs to be 'high winds' for it to be considered a storm.
Extreme weather condition on September 17, 2023, which saw a month's worth of rainfall fall in just 24 hours, led to Butlins making the
