Following the catastrophic Kahramanmaraş earthquake that rocked Turkey and spread its impact to neighboring regions, Mosaic Insurance Group was the only insurance company in Uzbekistan to cover the losses incurred, Mosaic played a key role in providing financial assistance and providing stability to those affected by the seismic shock, occurred on February 6, 2023.
The scale of destruction caused by the earthquake is difficult to overestimate. The earthquake zone, covering an area of about 350,000 square kilometers, left a trail of destruction that directly affected an estimated 9.1 million people. Unfortunately, about 46,000 people died in Turkey alone, with the brunt of the disaster falling on the provinces of Hatay and Kahramanmaraş. In these areas, the human toll was staggering, with an estimated 21,900 and 12,600 deaths respectively.
The physical damage reflects the human tragedy in all its enormity. Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) reported that some 280,000 buildings were damaged to the point of being reduced to rubble, while another 710,000 structures suffered severe damage.
The earthquake’s impact reverberated far beyond Turkey’s borders, highlighting the interconnectedness of regional risks and the need for joint efforts to create pools with sufficient capacity to cover such risks.
For Mosaic, the disaster provided an opportunity to learn and improve. Lessons learned from the Kahramanmaraş earthquake series have served as a catalyst to better understand and assess risks and improve insurance solutions.
PERILS AG recently updated its estimate of losses in the insured property market due to the earthquake to TRY 117.0 billion, equivalent to approximately US$6.2 billion at February 2023 exchange rates. These figures provide a sobering reality check, especially given the evolution of loss estimates over time. Initially estimated at 65.4 billion Turkish lira six weeks after the event, subsequent estimates were constantly revised upward, highlighting the enormity of the disaster’s consequences.
Mosaic Insurance Group is today the only insurance company in Uzbekistan covering catastrophic risks incurred by Turkey in February 2023. To date, the company has already paid 300,892.12 euros for losses related to the earthquake. With further payments expected in 2024, Mosaic Insurance Group’s commitment to providing support during the crisis demonstrates its role as a trusted partner in the insurance industry.