After the strong wind, which at some places on April 3 reached the force of a storm, 28 insurance claims have already been made. According to data summary of BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS (BTA), BTA has received 114 insurance claims for a total amount over 215,000 euros for damages due to storms in March and April.

“Falling trees during the storm of the past week have severely damaged a number of cars – eight CASCO insurance claims were received. The other were property insurance claims for damaged and torn off roofs, as well as other damages,” says BTA Insurance Claims Handling Department Director Kārlis Liepiņš.

The largest insurance claims for the recent storms have been respectively 50,000 euros and 15,000 euros – they were received for damages to property near Nereta and at Ventspils municipality, as well as 3000 euros for one of the CASCO insurance cases. Considerable amounts, each for 1200 euros, were claimed for the other seven CASCO insured events. 

“Compared to other storms, this time the number of claims is lower, although the amounts are larger, which means that the damages to property have been severe,” explains K. Liepiņš.

The State Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) received 51 call due to the strong wind, which in some regions of Latvia on the 3^rd of April reached speeds of 23 metres per second. Fallen trees, damaged a building at Brīvības Street in Riga, a building got its tile finishing peeled off, smashing a nearby shop’s window glass, while a technical vocational school at Saulaine had a roof fragment torn off, sum up the SFRS.

According to the SFRS spokesperson Agrita Vītola, the majority of calls were because of trees and branches fallen on motor roads. The wind also had torn off roofs of buildings and various structures.

BTA advises to insure your property against such accident risks and exercise caution during stormy weather, avoiding parking cars underneath trees and timely making sure having tightly fixed windows, roofs and other parts of buildings.

About BTA

BTA Baltic Insurance Company is one of the leading insurance companies in the Baltics, offering the broadest range of non-life insurance services in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. BTA employs more than 1,000 employees in the Baltics. The largest shareholder of BTA is Vienna Insurance Group AG with close to 200 years of experience in the insurance business. With about 50 companies in 25 countries and more than 25,000 employees, Vienna Insurance Group is a clear market leader in its CEE markets. Vienna Insurance Group is the best-rated company of ATX, the leading index of Vienna Stock Exchange with a rating of A+ with stable outlook from Standard & Poor’s; its share is also listed on the Prague Stock Exchange.

Additional information:

Elīna Rasmane

Marketing and Public Relations Department Director

BTA Baltic Insurance Company AAS

e-mail elina.rasmane@bta.lv