More and more natural disasters - fires, floods, storms and snowfalls - are questioning the readiness of households in our country to deal with damage. However, most Bulgarians do not insure their property unless they are obligated by a bank under a loan. This was explained by Plamen Danailov, Deputy Chairman of the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC), Head of the “Insurance and Supervision“ Department.
He added that people whose homes were affected by the floods will receive compensation if they have valid insurance covering the risk of flooding.
“If they have refusals, I urge them to contact the Financial Supervision Commission. We can give mandatory instructions to insurers“, Danailov told BTV.
The Deputy Chairman of the FSC called on companies to consider with priority the cases of people whose homes are their primary residences, especially with the onset of winter.
If the object was insured, the insurer has assumed the risk and must pay compensation, regardless of possible shortcomings in the documentation.
“Once the insurer has agreed to insure this object, the responsibility remains his“, emphasized Danzilov.
If there is a dispute regarding the amount of the amount paid, the first step is a signal to the FSC, and the final decision can be made by the court.
According to Danilov, property insurance in Bulgaria is extremely small, especially when it is not mandatory.
“Main Bulgarians insure their cars – about 70% of the market is car insurance. They are also mandatory. Health and property insurance is very rare“, he commented.
However, in Western Europe, such policies are much more common, and the systems are supplemented by state support and climate/catastrophic funds that cover major damages.
There is also discussion throughout Europe about making home insurance mandatory in view of what is happening, there are increasingly more natural disasters that affect property.
Danailov explained that this is just an idea, but over time this will probably happen in our country.
According to Danilov, there is no direct increase in the price of mandatory “Third Party Liability“ insurance. In the long run, however, higher benefits will inevitably lead to higher premiums, as is the case in neighboring and Western European countries.