China's insurance institutions receive large number of claims from flood-hit areas

BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- China's insurance institutions have received a large number of claims from people affected by floods and geological disasters triggered by recent extreme rainfall in Hebei, Beijing, Heilongjiang, Jilin and Tianjin, the National Financial Regulatory Administration said on Tuesday.

As of 10 a.m. on Aug. 8, insurance institutions in the five regions have received 117,600 claims, mainly related to automobiles, enterprise property and agricultural insurance.

The estimated losses set out in the claims total 5.37 billion yuan (about 750.37 million U.S. dollars), according to the administration.

Insurance institutions have already settled 22,600 claims, paying out a total of 190 million yuan.

The administration has instructed insurance institutions to offer efficient services through accurate predictions, solid preparations, smooth communication, simple procedures, fast payments and specialized services.