Claims from September wildfires in Portugal reach €17m
Portugal’s insurers have received claims from last month’s wildfires totalling more than €17m, according to the country’s insurance association. The Portuguese Association of Insurers (APS) reported that claims from the country’s Aveiro region account for more than half of the claims received to date and for almost three-quarters of the total claims bill.
Insurers have received more than 500 claims for damage caused by the wildfires between 15 and 19 September in central and northern regions of Portugal, APS said, although the number of claims as well as the total loss figure is expected to rise.
The APS said 67% of the losses so far are booked against multi-risk insurance for businesses and 25% for residential housing. But it also said €800,000 of claims had been filed for personal accident and work insurance policies for death and bodily injury.
More than 100 simultaneous wildfires were recorded in central and northern Portugal at their peak and at least nine people were reported to have died in the wildfires, which burnt more than 95,000 hectares of land.
The fires in Portugal contrasted sharply with flooding in other parts of Europe at the same time, and marked an end to the relatively calm wildfire season.
