After floods in Germany, insurance firm sees claims for insured damage worth $8.2 billion

At least 180 people were killed in severe floods that wrecked towns in western Germany in July. Heavy rainfall had turned the streams into raging torrents, washed away cars and caused buildings to collapse in the western cities. According to AP, an insurance group has stated that the floods in Western Germany have caused insured damage of about 7 billion euros ($8.2 billion).

Insurance group faces insured damage due to floods

Joerg Asmussen, the head of the German Insurance Association, informed that damages to residential buildings, household equipment and companies suffered damages worth about 6.5 billion euros ($7.6 billion) of the estimated amount, according to AP. The damage to vehicles estimates at about 450 million euros ($529 million). In addition, the association stated that the total damage caused by the floods will be far greater than its projections.

In order to help rebuild the regions hit by the floods, the German government has agreed to provide 30 billion euros ($35 billion),  Previously, the umbrella group for private insurers had assessed that insured losses would be between 4.5 billion to 5.5 billion euros. The group for private insurers revealed that many buildings were not insured for "elementary damage" from catastrophes such as floods. They stated that just 46% of residential buildings were insured against occurrences like heavy rain and floods, while all residential buildings were insured against storms and hail.

Earlier this month, German prosecutors had stated that they were looking for grounds to investigate probable failure by the government in alerting people causing deaths in western Germany following the death of hundreds of people due to severe floods. According to the residents of two flood-hit towns, they were only 'warned shortly before the floods had hit their place and that the information they received from authorities was "vague", according to AP.

In a statement, the office of Germany's public prosecutor maintained that it was investigating whether to start preliminary proceedings on 'negligent homicide and negligent bodily harm as the result of possibly failed or delayed warnings or evacuations of the population.' According to the statement by the German prosecutor, pieces of evidence in the case could include police reports on the deaths of 12 people in a care facility in the town of Sinzig, as well as news reports of the disaster.

(IMAGE: AP)

(Inputs from AP)