Several insurance companies have announced that they will stop taking new contracts in these territories.
Published on 04/12/2024 11:28
Reading time: 2min
New Caledonia, Antilles… Faced with repeated urban violence in overseas territories, the insurance companies still present are reviewing their guarantees for businesses. Groupama and Allianz announced to AFP on Thursday November 28 that they were limiting their offers in Martinique and Guadeloupe. “Given the frequency and severity of the risk of riots in certain overseas territories, we have taken the decision to exclude [ce] risk of our business contracts”the German insurer told AFP. Groupama, whose first-half net profit was hit by the riots in New Caledonia, confirmed that it had taken a similar measure.
Generali was the first to initiate the movement. In the specialized weekly Insurance Argusan executive of the Italian group declared on November 22 “suspend subscription” new contracts for companies in the Antilles.
Concretely, these decisions mean that damage linked to riots or civil unrest will no longer be compensated by insurance. But, without riot risk coverage, it is difficult if not impossible to convince a bank to finance your project, warn employer representatives. “We are facing a very serious systemic problem”estimates Hervé Mariton, president of the Federation of Overseas Companies.
Faced with the problem, all actors turn to the State. On the insurer side, it is estimated that it has failed in its mission of maintaining order and that it is responsible for the episodes of unrest which marked 2024. According to the professional federation France Assureurs, the damage caused by the riots in New Caledonia cost insurers a billion euros. Since then, violence has also broken out in Martinique where, against the backdrop of a movement against the high cost of living, dozens of commercial properties have been burglarized, looted or set on fire.
