Cyber insurance uptake lags as attacks on property firms rise 17%
Cyberattacks against UK property services businesses increased by 17% in 2025, while cyber insurance penetration remains below the wider SME market across every business size, according to GlobalData.
Cyber insurance penetration among UK real estate and renting businesses remains below the wider SME market despite cyberattacks against property services firms increasing by 17% in 2025, according to GlobalData.
The company’s Q1 2025 UK SME Insurance Survey found that just 7.7% of sole traders in the real estate and renting sector held cyber insurance, compared with 13.1% across the wider SME market.
Among micro businesses, penetration stood at 15.8%, compared with 26.4% across all SMEs, while 20.5% of small property businesses had cover compared with 40.1% across the wider market. For medium-sized businesses, the figures were 55% and 63% respectively.
The findings come as figures sourced from the Information Commissioner’s Office show cyberattacks against UK property services businesses increased from 178 incidents in 2024 to 208 in 2025.
GlobalData said property businesses can hold significant amounts of personal and financial information, including bank details, mortgage information, tenancy records, proof of address, passports and driving licences.
The risks also extend to property transactions. City of London Police and Action Fraud recorded 143 cases of conveyancing fraud between April 2024 and March 2025, resulting in losses of £11.7m. The average loss was £78,393, with most cases involving residential property transactions.
Charlie Hutcherson, senior insurance analyst at GlobalData, commented: “Property businesses are becoming increasingly reliant on digital systems while continuing to hold large amounts of sensitive personal and financial information.”
Hutcherson continued: “For insurers, this represents an opportunity to address an increasingly visible protection gap. Improving understanding of cyber risks among property businesses will be important, but insurers will also need to make cover easier to understand and access.”
GlobalData said brokers and insurers could play a role in helping smaller firms understand the potential financial impact of cyber incidents and how insurance can complement cybersecurity measures.
Hutcherson concluded: “As property transactions and customer interactions become increasingly digital, cyber exposure within the sector is unlikely to diminish. Rising attack volumes combined with comparatively low insurance penetration could increase the number of businesses absorbing cyber losses themselves. Insurers that can improve awareness, simplify distribution, and demonstrate the practical value of cyber cover therefore have an opportunity to increase penetration within an underserved part of the SME market.”
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