Record Compensation in Romania: 5-Year High Payout for Fire-Damaged Home

The largest compensation paid last year by a UNSAR Member company, based on the optional home insurance policy, exceeded 2.5 million lei (514,000 euros). This is the largest compensation recorded in the last 5 years, being 2 times higher than the one paid in 2022 and even 4 times higher than the one in 2021.

According to the analysis carried out at the association level, the amount was paid to cover the damages caused by a fire. We remind you that fire was the risk that caused the greatest damage to homes in past years as well.

“Fire is the risk that worries Romanians the most, and the level of compensation increases alarmingly from one year to the next. Thus, it is important not to postpone the decision to fully insure our home, for the sake of ourselves and our families”, said Alexandru Ciuncan, President & General Director of UNSAR, according to a press release.

In Romania, the risk of fire is covered by the optional insurances issued for homes that are already protected by a mandatory PAD insurance. Optional policies offer an extended level of protection, at the real value of the building and/or the assets owned, being able to cover a series of natural phenomena, but also other types of risks such as: earthquakes, floods, landslides, fires, explosions, falls of bodies, floods caused by damage to water-sewage installations, air conditioning, heating, malfunctions of the thermal plant, damage to electronic/household appliances, etc. Also, an optional insurance can be customized through special clauses, depending on the specifics of each home and the individual needs of customers. For example, damages caused to neighbors can also be covered.

“Although only 17% of homes are also protected by an optional policy, insurance companies compensate daily more than 73 damage files only based on these types of insurance. It depends on us if we choose to go through less happy moments alone or with the support of risk management specialists,” added Alina Barbulescu, Property & Property Insurance Specialist at UNSAR.