Levent Korkut, Chairman of TOBB Insurance Agencies Executive Committee, said that the insurance sector has been disrupted and changed its paradigms due to the devastating impact of the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş, and announced that the TCIP compulsory earthquake insurance coverage rate in Türkiye is 59 percent.
Stating that there are 20 million TCIP compulsory earthquake insured, Korkut said, "Our number of living policies is around 12 million. Only one out of 4 houses has voluntary housing insurance other than TCIP.
The insurance rate in compulsory traffic insurance is 80 percent. One out of every 4 vehicles is insured. In fire insurance, while the rate is high in large industrial enterprises, the rate in SMEs is around 50 percent. In other words, only one out of every two SMEs has insurance. In general, the insurance capacity utilization rate is around 40 percent."
Stating that a change in the scope of TCIP is on the agenda, Korkut said that the expansion of the reinsurance capacity in possible disasters, especially by further enlarging the fund pool, will carry the solvency of TCIP to much higher levels. Stating that possible damages can be covered more quickly and effectively, Korkut said, "These funds will pave the way for long-term, affordable loans in capital markets for the real sector.
It will enable citizens to benefit from the protection of insurance more frequently and more, increase insurance awareness in the society and serve to quickly compensate the economic loss in disasters." Stating that the increase in natural disasters due to the effects of climate change has caused housing, fire and workplace insurances to gain importance in Türkiye as in the rest of the world, Korkut said, "The insurance rate increases after every earthquake, natural disaster or fire.
However, what needs to happen is a permanent increase in the insurance rate. The public, the business world, insurance companies and us, the intermediaries, all together have to make a serious effort to spread insurance awareness at the grassroots level." Stating that projects should be carried out starting from school ages to create insurance awareness, Korkut emphasized the importance of building robust SMEs by increasing the interest of SMEs in insurance.
"The biggest problem in policies is the lack of guarantees"
Emphasizing that insurance is a very special and technical product, Korkut gave the following warning to citizens who will have insurance:
"I think that the biggest problem as a result of damages is the lack of guarantees in the policies. Since this situation creates serious victimization, I would like to emphasize that good, fast and complete service can be obtained in case of damage in policies that do not lack guarantees obtained from insurance agencies that are available 24/7. It is also very important to follow the policy term. A low-priced policy may not protect you properly in case of damage. When you encounter such a product, I recommend that you at least request an opinion from your agent."
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