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State-run insurance companies have fast tracked the process of claims settlement in the wake of the rising death toll and extensive damage to the physical infrastructure at hydropower stations in flood-ravaged Uttarakhand.
“Some claims have started coming in and we are assessing the losses. Life Insurance Corporation of India has set up a special office and deputed a senior officer, while the public sector general insurance companies have set up a coordinated office in Uttarakhand to attend to all the claimants,” said Financial Services Secretary Rajiv Takru.
New India Assurance, the country’s largest general insurance company, has so far received about five claims from hydroelectric power stations located in the region, said a senior company official.
In a communication to the stock exchanges, state-owned National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) said that due to cloud burst and unprecedented floods in Uttarakhand water had inundated its 280 MW Dhauliganga Power Station. NHPC has an ‘all risk insurance policy’ with New India Assurance.
The insurer is currently assessing the damage caused by the floods.
EASING THE PROCESS
As a special measure, Finance Minister has asked LIC to settle all claims from the flood-hit State on a priority basis and waive the normal seven-year waiting period for settlement of claims in case of missing persons.
LIC is offering assistance in policy-servicing matters besides extending concessions to policyholders/claimants affected by the natural calamity, according to a notification.
It had also set up dedicated phone lines in all zones across the country to provide assistance to the claimants.
Although most of the claims may come to LIC, private insurers have also streamlined their processes to ensure faster settlement of claims.
“We have simplified the process to ensure that with minimum documentation genuine claims will be settled,” said Kalpana Sampat, Chief – Branch Operations, Underwriting and Claims, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance.
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