Communities of municipalities are urgently looking for insurers! In the Somme, as elsewhere in France, more and more communities are struggling to find companies that agree to insure them. Too many risks suggest these insurers, who hide in particular behind natural disasters and bad weather more and more numerous, or even behind the urban violence of the beginning of summer. In the Somme, at least two communities of communes are in difficulty: Terre de Picardie, in the east of the Somme, and Ponthieu-Marquenterre in the north-west of the department. Some of their contracts end on December 31, 2023.
“We collectively pay the price for riots and bad weather”
In the east of the Somme, the community of communes Terre de Picardie, which notably includes Chaulnes and Rosières-en-Santerre, cannot find an insurer for property damage, that is to say buildings insurance. “There are 30,000 square meters to be provided, with schools, a recycling center, seven wastewater treatment plants and the headquarters of the community of municipalities.“, explains President Philippe Cheval. The former insurer did not want to renew the contract, without justification, and the other companies contacted offer “exorbitant prices, denounces Philippe Cheval. Insurance claims a premium for our buildings of 150,000 euros – that’s 10 times more expensive than what we pay today ; and with a deductible of 100,000 euros, 100 times more expensive than currently. And to top it all off, insurance companies don’t want to take charge of the recycling center and the wastewater treatment plants.“.
For the president of the community of communes Terre de Picardie, insurers have become cautious : “We were asked for a sworn declaration to the effect that we had not had any excesses linked to the urban violence at the beginning of summer… We are collectively paying the price for these epiphenomena, which I do not deny: schools and media libraries burned during the riots, or even the big storms that there were. When everything is going well, we are insured without lowering the premiums; but as soon as there is a problem, the prices explode !” denounces Philippe Cheval.
Without a reasonable price, the communities of communes Terre de Picardie will self-insure from January 1, 2024 while continuing to look for a company. “It’s not a comfortable situation, but we will do as the State does. This money which should normally go to insurance will be virtually put aside and used in the event of damage.“, he explains.
“We want to quickly find an insurer”
On the side of the community of municipalities Ponthieu-Marquenterre, However, this solution is excluded. The community is seeking insurance by the end of the year for the protection of its agents and elected officials, and also for damage to property.. “We have 46 buildings to insure, including 21 schools, 4 gymnasiums, a village hall, recycling centers, the community building, etc. explains Dominique Delannoy, vice-president in charge of communications. Given the recent damage with storms, we see that damage can happen at any time. We therefore want to quickly find an insurer.”
Another insurance that has exploded, that on vehicles in this community of communes of Ponthieu-Marqueterre: + 26% on the premium. “We are very surprised, because we kept the same number of vehicles and there are very few accidents.“, concludes Dominique Delannoy.
2023-11-27 02:42:49
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