Money
Flood damage insurance claims total Rs2.5 billion
Non-life insurance companies have received claims worth Rs2.5 billion for damage caused by the recent floods in the Tarai, but they have paid none of them in the past one month.Non-life insurance companies have received claims worth Rs2.5 billion for damage caused by the recent floods in the Tarai, but they have paid none of them in the past one month.
The floods and landslides that hit the country last month took the lives of more than 120 persons. In addition, more than 69,617 goats, buffaloes, chickens and pigs perished as floodwaters rose across the southern plains.
More than 500 factories in the Morang Industrial Corridor had to be closed due to inundation. Likewise, 110 hotels in the jungle safari destination of Sauraha were affected. According to the Insurance Board (IB), insurance companies received the highest claims from the industrial, engineering and construction sectors. “Claims from industries were the highest as the flood damaged warehouses and other physical infrastructure,” IB Director Shreeman Karki said.
According to Karki, most factories had bought insurance because banks don’t issue loans if they don’t have it. Fire insurance is mandatory for manufacturers according to government laws, he added.
Insurance claims for damage caused to private cars and small public vehicles also amounted to a large amount. As per the IB, claims for losses to livestock and crops totalled only Rs23 million. Karki said that there were very few claims for crop losses compared to the estimated extent of damage as a large number of farmers were still reluctant to buy agricultural insurance.
The IB said that insurance companies had assigned an adequate number of surveyors in the flood affected areas to ensure quick settlement of claims.
Life insurance claims are yet to be assessed. “Life insurance claims related to flood victims could be insignificant.” Jhapa, Sunsari, Morang, Saptari, Sarlahi, Bara, Rautahat, Dhanusha and Sindhuli districts in the eastern region, and Makwanpur and Chitwan districts in the central region were among the worst affected by the floods.
Dang, Banke, Surkhet and Bardia in the western and far western regions too were hit hard by the floods and landslides following torrential monsoon rains.