“We have (…) decided to activate our exceptional system dedicated to the management of large-scale events, which provides for the urgent dispatch to the site of a joint reconnaissance mission for all the insurers concerned,” indicated Florence Lustman , president of France Assureurs, quoted in a press release. Although it is too early to estimate the number and cost of claims due to the passage of the cyclone, “the insurers concerned are already fully mobilized to support their policyholders”, individuals or companies.
According to a report from the general inspection of services dating from 2020, “only 6% of households insure their homes” in Mayotte, the poorest department in France. As is often the case in cases of exceptional circumstances, “insurers have also decided to extend the claims reporting period beyond the legal deadline of 30 days to extend it to 45 days,” adds France Assureurs.
The reconnaissance mission must allow “immediately to have a precise vision of the situation to anticipate the management of disasters”. Concretely, the profession, in agreement with the Federation of Expertise Companies (FSE), will very quickly send on site a few experts with a mission letter from France Assureurs to carry out an initial assessment of the damage, assures the text.
Desire. Tropical cyclone Chido hit the island of Mayotte with gusts observed at more than 220 km/h, causing very significant material damage. Schools and many homes were destroyed. Some 100,000 inhabitants are now without housing, or a third of the population. The road, drinking water and electricity networks are also seriously disrupted, according to France Assureurs.
The absolute priority is therefore the supply of water and food to the inhabitants, as well as security (clearing, sending stocks of tarpaulins) and the protection of property, since certain sites are already the subject of looting, adds the federation . The insurer Groupama noted that its policyholders “are ready to declare their claims but that they encounter difficulties due to the lack of network or electricity. We will be able to generalize video viewing for individuals as soon as the network is restored,” he told AFP.
Teams are in place in Reunion to receive calls, while waiting for the safety of the group’s 12 employees located in Mayotte, one of whom has still not given any news, according to Groupama. Groupama is also starting to make fund transfers, particularly for its policyholders who have had to leave their homes and “need to buy the essentials”. The insurer has also set up a psychological unit for its customers, “with video consultations (doctors and psychologists).
© Agence France-Presse
