CCRIF pays out $7.45m to Haitian government for Laura losses

The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) has paid out approximately $7.2 million to the Government of Haiti on its excess rainfall (XSR) parametric insurance policy following three days of heavy rainfall associated with tropical cyclone Laura. CCRIF said the total payouts to Haiti due to Laura was $7.45 million, inclusive of the Aggregate Deductible Cover (ADC), which was paid to the Government within 14 days of the end of the rains associated with Laura. It was CCRIF's fourth payout to Haiti. Previous payouts include...

... $7.8 million following the 2010 earthquake, $20.4 million on the country’s TC policy following Hurricane Matthew in 2016 which passed over Haiti as a powerful Category 4 hurricane and $3.0 million on the country’s XSR policy for that same event. The payout of $20.4 million to Haiti following Matthew remains CCRIF’s single largest payout to a member country. Since its inception in 2007, CCRIF has made a total of 44 payouts for 22 events (earthquakes, tropical cyclones, and excess rainfall events) to 14 member governments totalling approximately $163 million, exclusive of ADC payments.

The Minister of the Economy and Finance, Michel Patrick Boisvert, stated that CCRIF's parametric insurance policy helps the Haitian Government to improve the financial management of natural disaster risks in order to reduce their effects on public finances.

Isaac Anthony, chief executive of CCRIF, said: “We will continue to support communities in Haiti to build their resilience and significantly reduce their vulnerabilities to hydro-meteorological events and natural hazards in general as a means of protecting lives and livelihoods."

He added, “CCRIF takes this opportunity to once again recognize the unwavering support of all our donors who over the years have played indispensable roles in supporting not only the Facility but also our members in making available CCRIF insurance products, recognising the key role of risk transfer in reducing budget volatility and in supporting the most vulnerable.”