The China Insurance Regulatory Commission has urged insurers to ramp up claims services in the wake of recent severe snowstorms affecting areas in north and northeastern China's Henan, Hebei and Shanxi provinces.

The CIRC's Henan bureau noted that as of Nov. 12, most of the province has been covered by snow, while several areas including north of the Yellow River has recorded snow accumulations between 15 and 30 centimeters (6 to 12 inches) or more.

Such accumulations are a 1-in-60-year event, according to the regulator. The snowfalls have had significant impact on local transport, telecommunications and manufacturing activities.

Between Nov. 11 and Nov. 13, the Henan regulator said domestic property insurers received 7,316 indemnity reports. Of those, motor insurance accounted for 6,853 cases and nonmotor insurance for 463 cases. Estimated losses for 7,201 cases that were evaluated totaled 77.94 million yuan (US $11.43 million). Another 115 cases are still under evaluation.

For life insurance, the regulator noted 54 indemnity reports in Henan, with estimated losses still under evaluation.

In Shanxi province, as of Nov. 12, the local insurance market received 6,675 snowstorm-related indemnity reports, with estimated losses of more than 47 million yuan. Motor insurance accounted for 6,288 claims, while nonmotor insurance accounted for 387 cases.

The regulator said insurers have finished 95% of their investigations of reported indemnity cases. A domestic branch of PICC Property and Casualty Co. [77633] has underwritten a Shanxi-based glass manufacturing company, which has an estimated losses of 10 million yuan. Taikang Life Insurance Co. [77638] recorded an individual accident indemnity claim with an insured value 40,000 yuan.

In northern China's Hebei province and in northwest China's Ningxia autonomous region, local insurance regulators have instructed insurers to simplify snowstorm-related indemnity procedures and strengthen cooperation among transportation authorities, hospitals and agricultural authorities to provide efficient insurance compensation services to policyholders.

Local reports said that as of Nov. 15, the snowstorms in north and northeastern China caused 32 deaths and destroyed 15,000 residences, with the economic loss was expected to reach 6.96 billion yuan.