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BEIJING – China’s banking and insurance regulator said on Thursday that it will guide insurers to increase investment in natural disaster insurance and enrich product offerings.

It also plans to raise public awareness of risks, to let natural disaster insurance play a greater role in national emergency response, the China’s Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) said in a statement sent to Reuters.

At least 73 people have died in China’s flood-stricken central province of Henan, official data showed, leaving rail and road links disrupted, goods ranging from cars and electronics damaged, thousands of livestock killed.

Chinese insurers have received a total 376,200 claims relating to the Henan floods as of July 26, the CBIRC said, and the total payouts so far reached 492 million yuan.

“Natural disaster risks such as earthquakes, typhoons and floods affected people the most, and it’s our people who bear the most direct losses,” the CBIRC said.

More products are needed in the area as to “better satisfy people’s diversified needs to insure risks,” it said.

(Reporting by Cheng Leng and Tony Munroe; editing by Louise Heavens)

Photograph: Rescuers use boats to evacuate people from a flooded area in Weihui in central China’s Henan Province, on Monday, July 26, 2021. Photo credit: Chinatopix via AP.

Topics Natural Disasters Carriers China