35 pct of Elazığ houses covered by insurance scheme: Official

The powerful earthquake that struck eastern Turkey last week can generate losses for insurers, as some 35 percent of houses in the quake-hit Elazığ had been insured, an official has said.

Speaking to state-run Anadolu Agency, Mete Güler, the chairman of Turkish Catastrophe Insurance Pool (DASK), said that 43,000 residential houses out of 123,000 in Elazığ are currently insured.

"[The insured] amount is some 35 percent of overall residences. In [the eastern province of] Malatya, some 63,000 residences have been insured out of 165,000. The insurance rate is about 38 percent," Güler said. He added that in all of eastern Turkey, the rate of insurance is about 40 percent.

A 6.8-magnitude quake shook Elazığ on Jan. 24, causing 37 deaths in Elazığ and four in neighboring Malatya. According to Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD), some 1,607 were injured and 45 were pulled from the rubble.

Güler said that officials have received some 7,500 notices by quake victims in almost a week yet works for damage assessment have not been concluded.

Underlining that DASK has the capacity to pay some 24 billion Turkish Liras (over $4 billion) in claim payments, the chairman said that the maximum amount of security deposit that can be paid is 240,000 Turkish Liras (nearly $42,000) for all residences.

"After assessing the damages, we will determine the compensation amounts and will make the payments as soon as possible," Güler said.

"We have made out preparations and will be with our citizens as soon as possible without victimizing them," he added.

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