Barbados experiences Heavy Volcanic Ashfall.

Thinking of making a claim? This is what you need to know.

The Volcanic ashfall from St Vincent remains an ongoing situation for Barbados with eruptions happening as recently as 22nd April.  The island has been seriously affected by the volcanic ash deposits due to these frequent eruptions and the subsequent clean up. The Insurance Companies have acknowledged that a Volcanic eruption is an insured event, and this is our advice and assessment on the key issues that will come into play when making a claim.

The Deductible
Before the insurers pay, the cost of the damage must exceed the deductible (2%) of the sum insured.  This deductible is the most critical hurdle to get over as the 2% of the sum insured is a significant number for many clients.

The Physical Damage Condition
Insurers have confirmed that this is an insured peril, but there must be physical damage to the insured property to trigger the claim.   If there is damage, cleaning up/repairing these items will be considered part of the claim.

The 72 Hour Clause
All insurance policies have this condition, where 72 hours is considered ‘one event’, and after that period, there would be a new deductible.   We suspect that insurers will consider all the damage/activity as one event with no more activity. However, if there is an eruption again in 2 months, insurers will apply the deductible again.

 

CLAIM NOTIFICATION AND INFORMATION REQUIRED:

There is a defined period to notify the insurers about the claim.
The claim notification is a straightforward process:

  1. Use the guidance provided to assess the impact of the deductible
  2. Send an email that documents the damage to Tomlin Brokers
  3. Include in your email photos of the damage
  4. Include in your email a rough estimate of the costs that you are likely to incur

We will then advise insurers, and insurers will probably assign an adjuster to visit the property.

If you feel that there is enough damage that will be above the deductible, we recommend contacting the TIB team via email and advising the Tomlin Brokers team immediately.

 

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Barbados: +1 246-622-1742
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www.tomlinbrokers.com