For the more than 700 business owners attacked and looted since Tuesday, June 27, the time has come to take stock. Insurers should cover the majority of the damage, but the victims will not come out unscathed.
If fire or theft, for example, are part of the basic risks and are covered by professional multi-risk contracts, this is not the case for operating losses.
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According to France Assureurs, only one out of two businesses is insured against operating losses and can therefore be compensated for the loss of profit linked to the closure, until a reopening.
“It’s not a huge proportion”comments to AFP Olivier Moustacakis, co-founder of Assurland, an online insurance comparator.
Bill higher than for the “yellow vests”?
For businesses that have seen their glass door pulverized with stones and hammers, their iron curtain ripped open or their facade blackened by fire, not to mention thefts and damage to the interior, the reopening could take time.
If the extent of the damage is for the moment difficult to quantify, the bill is likely to be higher than for the demonstrations of yellow vests, which had caused 249 million euros of damage in 2018 and 2019, and than for the 2005 riots (204 million euros).
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Whatever the loss suffered – fire, theft, broken windows… – it is also necessary to take into account the deductibles, or, for the operating loss guarantee, the days of waiting.
“It all depends on the contract you signed and the amount of premiums you were prepared to pay, since the lower the deductible, the higher the premium”explains Olivier Moustacakis.
The Mayor asks to reduce deductibles
On Saturday, the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire, describing these attacks and looting as“inexcusable, unspeakable and intolerable”urged insurers to extend reporting deadlines, quickly compensate victims and reduce deductibles.
“It’s the minimum, but after that we will have to see in the application of that”reacted this Sunday on RMC chef Thierry Marx, president of Umih, the main employers’ union in the hotel and catering industry.
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“The announcements are always announcements, (…) but it will then be necessary to deal directly with the insurance companies, to simplify the procedures, it is something else again”he added.
If the France Assureurs federation has said that it is mobilized to “accelerate compensation”on the other hand, it did not publicly come out in favor of a reduction in deductibles.
Subsidy files, “it’s not possible”
In addition to the economic aspect, there is also a psychological aspect for traders, a profession that is struggling to see the end of the tunnel, between the health crisis, the inflation of energy costs, the demonstrations against the pension reform , and now these riots.
“When you are a food business, when you start at 4 a.m. at Rungis, when you close your shop at 8 p.m., when you still have to clean up and fill in your subsidy files, it is not possible”alerted Saturday on BFMTV Murielle Bourreau, vice-president of the French Federation of trade associations.
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Despite everything, the procedure for obtaining compensation “keep it pretty simple”reassures Olivier Moustacakis, advising to contact his insurer as soon as possible, even if the extent of the theft or destruction is not yet precisely known.
It is in a second time that it will be a question of estimating the damage with the assistance of the insurer, who will be able to send an expert.
Possibility of turning against the State
“We are not on monstrous deadlines”compensation will take a few weeks for the majority of cases, and despite the extent of the damage, “Insurers are still equipped” to cope with an influx of requests, adds Olivier Moustacakis.
To facilitate the filing of complaints, and therefore compensation, several prefectures have strengthened their system.
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In the event of damage not covered, the victim can also turn against the State, “civilly liable for damages and damages resulting from crimes and misdemeanors committed (…) by armed or unarmed crowds or gatherings”according to the Homeland Security Code.
The cities of Paris and Toulouse were thus able to be compensated at the time of the yellow vests, but the procedure is necessarily longer than with an insurer.
2023-07-02 16:09:18
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