Government subsidizes 55–100% of total premiums
Ministry of Interior and Safety urges sign-ups before rainy season
Enrollment in the government-backed flood and earthquake disaster insurance program — designed to help policyholders quickly recover from natural disasters — remains low, data showed Monday.
According to the Ministry of Interior and Safety, enrollment rates as of the end of last month stood at 34.9 percent for housing (629,280 out of about 1.80 million eligible units), 18.1 percent for agricultural and forestry greenhouses (4,411 hectares out of 24,395 hectares), and just 4.6 percent for small-business shops and factories (39,173 out of 850,348 eligible properties).
The flood and earthquake disaster insurance is a policy insurance product covering damage from natural disasters including typhoons, floods, heavy rain, strong winds, storm surges, tsunamis, heavy snowfall, earthquakes and seismic sea waves. The government subsidizes between 55 percent and 100 percent of the total premium.
Last year, a policyholder whose home was completely destroyed by heavy rain paid an annual premium of 11,900 won ($8) and received about 80 million won in insurance payouts, while a policyholder whose shop was flooded paid a premium of 63,100 won and received about 50 million won.
Small-business policyholders also receive additional benefits beyond damage compensation — including preferential interest rates when borrowing policy funds from the Small and Medium Business Market Service and fee discounts when obtaining general guarantees from regional credit guarantee foundations.
Starting this year, the eligibility criteria for damage compensation were eased to allow claims when a weather alert is issued in an adjacent area. The annual coverage limit for small businesses was also raised to 100 million won — twice the per-incident coverage cap.
To reduce the inconvenience of annual renewals, two new features were introduced for housing policyholders: a "re-enrollment rider" that allows contract renewal by phone without additional paperwork, and a "gift insurance" option that lets adult children purchase coverage on behalf of elderly parents.
The insurance is available through seven insurers — DB Insurance, Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, KB Insurance, NH Nonghyup Property & Casualty Insurance, Hanwha General Insurance and Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance — as well as through the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business.
Kim Gwang-yong, head of the ministry's National Disaster and Safety Management Headquarters, urged the public to "actively sign up for flood and earthquake disaster insurance, which protects your home and workplace at low cost, before the full rainy season begins."
thlee@heraldcorp.com
