Insurance claims related to lightning strikes are proving more costly as a result of householders having an increasing number of electronic devices in their homes.

The devices, which are vulnerable to damage from direct lightning strikes or associated power surges, also tend to have a higher value than in the past.

That is the finding of analysis by the New York-based Insurance Information Institute, which reported that in the US the average insurance claim relating to a lightning strike was $7,947 last year, compared with $7,400 in 2014, even though the number of claims fell 0.4 per cent between the two years.

In 2010, the average cost per claim was only $4,846.

Claims made last year by about 100,000 policyholders totalled $790 million.

“The average cost per claim is volatile from year to year. But it has generally continued to rise, in part because of the enormous increase in the number and value of consumer electronics including increasingly popular home automation systems,” said James Lynch, vice-president of information services and chief actuary at the Institute.

“Not only does lightning result in deadly home fires, it can cause severe damage to appliances, electronics, computers and equipment, phone systems, electrical fixtures and the electrical foundation of a home.”

The Insurance Information Institute noted that damage caused by lightning, such as fire, is covered by standard homeowners insurance policies. Some policies provide coverage for power surges that are the direct result of a lightning strike.

The analysis was done with data from the III and from insurer State Farm.