Insurance claims at Mariental now over N$60 m

JUST two weeks after floodwater disrupted the lives of more than 2 000 Mariental residents, insurance claims have already gone beyond the N$60-million mark, according to insurance companies active in the area.

Directly following the floods, Santam Namibia had estimated that the claims to their company alone would hit N$30 million. Santam Financial Manager Franco Feris said yesterday that this figure had already reached N$36 million.”Currently we’ve serviced 100 per cent of our clients to an amount of N$36 074 066,” he said.The company has 162 clients at Mariental.Feris said that, as much as Santam’s presence at Mariental has grown since the 2000 floods, so has the damage.The company paid out claims to the value of N$6 million after the floods of 2000, he said.One problem faced by insurance companies is that assessors still cannot get into some of the affected areas, says Mutual and Federal’s General Manager, Japie le Roux.The company had processed the claims of 60 per cent of its clients, Le Roux said, without specifying the number of clients it has at the town.”There are areas that we still can’t risk going into like in places where walls have collapsed, and it will probably take another two months before we’ll be done,” he said.The company’s current estimate is around N$23 million, Le Roux said.He said although a number of people were unhappy with the increase in their excess payment since the last floods, most were satisfied with how their claims were being handled.Swabou Insurance said yesterday that it had processed seven claims amounting to N$4 million.The 2000 flood cost Mariental between N$30 million and N$35 million in insurance claims, and a flood-risk insurance evaluation done by the insurance industry afterwards estimated that if a similar disaster occurred in less than 20 years, the industry would not be able to handle losses higher than N$20 million.Santam Financial Manager Franco Feris said yesterday that this figure had already reached N$36 million.”Currently we’ve serviced 100 per cent of our clients to an amount of N$36 074 066,” he said.The company has 162 clients at Mariental.Feris said that, as much as Santam’s presence at Mariental has grown since the 2000 floods, so has the damage.The company paid out claims to the value of N$6 million after the floods of 2000, he said.One problem faced by insurance companies is that assessors still cannot get into some of the affected areas, says Mutual and Federal’s General Manager, Japie le Roux.The company had processed the claims of 60 per cent of its clients, Le Roux said, without specifying the number of clients it has at the town.”There are areas that we still can’t risk going into like in places where walls have collapsed, and it will probably take another two months before we’ll be done,” he said. The company’s current estimate is around N$23 million, Le Roux said.He said although a number of people were unhappy with the increase in their excess payment since the last floods, most were satisfied with how their claims were being handled.Swabou Insurance said yesterday that it had processed seven claims amounting to N$4 million.The 2000 flood cost Mariental between N$30 million and N$35 million in insurance claims, and a flood-risk insurance evaluation done by the insurance industry afterwards estimated that if a similar disaster occurred in less than 20 years, the industry would not be able to handle losses higher than N$20 million.