GVB with slightly higher loss amount
In the first half of 2020, Bern Building Insurance reported a total loss amount of 27.4 million Swiss francs. This is slightly higher than the previous year's figure (25.2 million), but lower than the 10-year average (39.6 million).
According to the Bern Building Insurance Fund (GVB), the three storms "Lolita", "Petra" and "Sabine" - which swept over the canton of Bern at the beginning of the year - caused damage amounting to 17.3 million Swiss francs (2019: 6.2 million).
According to the information, fires caused building damage in the amount of 10.1 million francs (2019: 19 million). The subsidiary GVB Privatversicherungen AG also reported a slightly higher loss amount of 16.2 million Swiss francs than in 2019 (14.6 million), GVB said.
Fire damage deep
The turbulence on the capital markets as a result of Covid-19 has also left its mark on the portfolio of GVB and its subsidiary. As of June 30, however, both were already able to almost compensate for their losses, the insurer writes. GVB reported an investment result of -0.8 percent (2019: 4.9 percent), while GVB Privatversicherungen AG reported 0 percent (2019: 4.9 percent).
Stefan Dürig, GVB's new Chief Executive Officer since the beginning of the year, is very pleased with the first half of the year: "The winter storms caused an above-average amount of damage. Our customer service and our valuation experts were challenged. I am therefore all the more pleased that fire losses are low this year. By means of awareness-raising measures, we want to continue to draw attention to fire risks in everyday life."
The most common causes of fires in the home include grills, candles, smoking products and electrical appliances. About the website feuerstopp.ch many practical tips are conveyed, for example in the form of explanatory videos.
Source: GVB
