A major incident has been declared on the Suffolk coast after a large heathland wildfire broke out just four miles from the Sizewell B nuclear power station, bringing the UK's own wildfire risk into focus even as Europe's largest blazes begin to stabilise.
Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters were tackling a wind-driven blaze at Dunwich Heath, near Leiston, that began on Wednesday evening and continued into a second day, with several people evacuated. The service said there was no current risk to Sizewell B because of the fire's distance and the prevailing easterly wind.
Elsewhere, the immediate picture is beginning to improve. Spain's largest recorded wildfire, west of Madrid, is now largely contained after failing to spread overnight, while French authorities reported no further growth in the Gironde blaze outside Bordeaux. Around 360,000 people have been evacuated since the fires began across France and Spain, although many evacuation orders have now been lifted. Elsewhere in Europe, the situation remains more severe, with three firefighters killed battling blazes in Greece and EU officials warning that prolonged fires in Spain and Portugal could increase the wider regional risk.
Greg Lawson, head of travel insurance at Collinson, said the wildfires in Spain and France have not triggered a significant increase in enquiries from UK travellers, with call volumes remaining broadly unchanged despite the disruption.
Most enquiries, he said, would likely relate to whether customers would still be covered if Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advice changed while they were overseas, or whether their policy would allow them to curtail a trip and return home. Whether those costs are covered depends on the level of cover purchased, any trip disruption add-ons and how directly travellers are affected.
"I am not aware of any significant increase in customer enquiries following the recent wildfire news."
Claims volumes have also remained modest.
"So far, we have had less than 15 claims registered so are not treating this as a major incident. This is likely due to Madrid and Bordeaux not being a major tourist destination in peak Summer and many travellers able to be transferred elsewhere."
That assessment broadly aligns with wider market commentary. Morningstar DBRS has said the impact on large, diversified insurers appears manageable so far, with the ultimate cost likely to depend more on how close the fires came to Bordeaux and Madrid than on the total number of hectares burned. Meanwhile, the Association of British Insurers has urged UK holidaymakers to keep a close watch on FCDO guidance, noting that only around half of UK travel insurance policies include catastrophe cover.
The fires have also demonstrated how unpredictable wildfire behaviour can become. France's Gironde blaze generated its own thunderstorms, a phenomenon rarely seen in Europe that complicated containment efforts and raised fresh questions for catastrophe modellers.
The Suffolk blaze also reinforces growing concerns that UK wildfire risk has been underestimated. Historically, the country has been under-modelled for a peril more commonly associated with southern Europe or California. Earlier this summer, the third UK heatwave of 2026 had already renewed warnings over wildfire and subsidence risk before the current outbreaks began.
Although travel insurance claims remain limited for now, the wider wildfire season remains highly volatile. With the Suffolk major incident ongoing, authorities continuing to monitor hotspots in France and Spain and EU officials warning that conditions could deteriorate elsewhere in southern Europe, insurers will be watching closely for any change in travel disruption or the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office updates its travel advice in the coming days.
