Cannabis farms on the rise as landlords count the cost
New data from Zurich UK suggests callouts to suspected or identified cannabis farms rose more than 200% in almost a decade.
The number of cannabis farms is on the rise, leaving landlords facing extensive damage to their properties, it has been revealed.
Insurer Zurich UK examined 17 cannabis farm-related claims worth a combined £9.4million since January 2022.
Investigators are warning that hidden grow operations are leaving properties unsafe, unlettable and facing six-figure repair bills.
Substantial repair costs
New data from the insurer shows fire and rescue service callouts to suspected or identified cannabis farms rose 218% between 2015 and 2024, climbing from 17 incidents to a record 54.
Numbers remained near peak levels last year, with 50 attendances recorded.
Freedom of Information data obtained from 21 fire and rescue services shows incidents rose 59% between 2019 and the 2024 peak.
Zurich’s investigators have found commercial units extensively altered to support cultivation, with electrical systems tampered with to meet the energy demands involved.
The modifications leave landlords facing extensive reinstatement work, long vacancies and substantial repair costs before buildings can be safely reoccupied.
Cannabis farm hotspots
South Wales emerged as Britain’s hotspot, with fire crews attending 90 suspected cannabis farms in seven years and a peak of 25 incidents in 2020.
Essex recorded 56 attendances during the past decade, followed by Hereford and Worcester with 55.
Home Office analysis puts the national figure at 640 cannabis farm fires between 2019 and 2024.
Zurich UK explains that claims range from those involving dangerous electrical alterations, extensive water damage from irrigation systems, widespread damp and mould, and significant structural changes made to conceal growing operations.
It suggests that by the time a property is recovered, landlords can be left facing “months of disruption, substantial reinstatement work and repair bills running into hundreds of thousands of pounds” before a building can be safely occupied again.
What we’re increasingly seeing is organised criminal groups often hiding in plain sight across the UK.”
Scott Clayton, Head of Claims Fraud at Zurich UK, says the profile of these operations has changed.
He says: “Many landlords still picture cannabis farms operating in remote industrial estates or hidden warehouses.
“What we’re increasingly seeing is organised criminal groups targeting empty shops, offices and retail premises, often hiding in plain sight on high streets across the UK.”
Legitimate business fronts
Clayton adds: “These operations can involve sophisticated attempts to present a legitimate business front, making it difficult for landlords to spot the warning signs until significant damage has already been done.”
Zurich is urging landlords to tighten tenant checks. Warning signs at the letting stage include tenants willing to pay the asking rent without negotiation, reluctance to involve solicitors on high-value leases, requests to remove inspection clauses, and newly incorporated companies with little financial history.
Once a tenancy is under way, indicators include a business that never appears to trade, repeated avoidance of inspections, blacked-out windows, external ducting fitted without permission, strong unusual odours and unexplained alterations to electrical systems.
