After a storm, the question arises whether the insurance will cover the damage. The insurance benefits are usually limited. If you want to protect yourself, you should take out appropriate insurance, for example against catastrophe or, in agriculture, against hail damage. However, there are also cases in which home or contents insurance plays a role, the Austrian Insurance Association informs.
The insurance covers damage caused by storms with top speeds of more than 60 km/h and consequential damage caused by falling trees and poles. If damage to the property occurs as a result of hail, snow pressure, falling rocks, falling rocks, earthquakes and landslides, the insurance company will normally waive these policies. However, depending on the home or contents insurance, catastrophic damage between 5,000 and 10,000 euros would also be reimbursed in most cases, Christian Kreuzer from Wiener Städtische told APA on Sunday.
“Premiums would be unmanageable”
The industry is in favor of including catastrophe losses in fire insurance policies for home and contents, UNIQA’s Klaus Kraigher told APA in an interview. “This would increase premiums for all policyholders by a manageable amount, but the loss would be covered 100 percent,” Kraigher said.
There are regional differences in compensation for special agreements, as also announced by Wiener Städtische and UNIQA. These depend on the danger zones. The insurers emphasized that the official data is publicly available and free of charge at hora.gv.at.
Processing may take some time
As some insurance companies are still processing insurance claims from the last storm, the new storm poses challenges for insurance companies, according to Wiener Städtische. But we are prepared. “We have expanded the number of service centers and IT and are using AI,” UNIQA said.
However, it is important to document or photograph the damage after the initial cleaning work, says Wiener Städtische.
“Recommend everyone to take precautions”
Insurers naturally strive to keep damage as low as possible and rely on prevention. Policyholders are warned via apps or text messages when severe storms are expected. “Damage to buildings can be avoided or at least limited by preventive measures,” said Doris Wendler, director of the Vienna city government, before the storm. “We advise all homeowners and tenants to take precautions while they still can. The most important thing, however, is that you do not risk your own life under any circumstances.”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
