TN floods: Insurers look at Rs 200 cr claims for 8 pvt jets

Mumbai, Dec 13: General insurance companies are likely to receive claims worth around Rs 200 crore from the owners of eight corporate jets that have been partly damaged by recent floods in Tamil Nadu.

The affected planes are owned by companies such as Kalyan Jewellers, TVS Motor, SUN TV, Garuda, Jet Airways, and Joy Jets, owned by Kerala-based jeweller Joy Alukas.

This is over and above close to Rs 3,000 crore claims the industry has received so far from the general public and industries after nearly a month-long floods drowned Chennai and neighbouring districts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

"One of our aircraft, the Brazilian-made Phenom 100 has got damaged due to the deluge and currently, we are busy assessing the loss," an executive of Joy Jets said.

Apart from four state-owned non-life insurers, private players like ICICI Lombard, Bajaj Allianz and HDFC Ergo are active in the aviation space.

Currently, these insurers are busy assessing losses of the eight aircraft and it may take up to a couple of months to settle those claims.

"Though we have not received any claims from the aviation sector due to the recent Tamil Nadu floods, what I hear from the industry is that claims are likely to come from the owners of eight corporate jets that got partly damaged. According to preliminary reports, the claim may cross Rs 200 crore," New India chairman and managing director G Srinivasan said.

"But let me make it clear that normally insurers provide cover for damage of aircraft or third-party liabilities only and they don't provide any cover for revenue loss incurred due to grounding of planes," said Srinivasan, who is also the chairman of General Insurance (Public Sector) Association.

"We have received claims worth Rs 80 crore for five aircraft which have got damaged due to the Chennai floods. All the damaged aircraft are chartered ones and are owned by groups like Kalyan Jewellers, TVS and Garuda," Oriental Insurance deputy general manager in Chennai, Ajit Kumar said.

"Besides, two aircraft owned by Jet Airways have also got partly damaged due to the floods as water entered the godown where they had been parked," he said, adding that two more aircraft of Jet have got partly damaged, but they have already resumed their flight after repair."

"United India has received claims for the three private planes owned by TVS (2) and SUN TV (1). However, we are yet to ascertain the damages incurred on those planes," United India general manager T L Alamelu said.

"Surveyors have been deputed to look into it and they are likely to submit their report before us within a week from now," she said. "

As we have provided insurance cover to hull and machineries of the aircraft only, we are concerned to settle claims under these segments only and we are not bothered about the revenue loss which these companies may have incurred due to their floods," she added.

PTI