(Bloomberg) -- Insurers from Lombard General Insurance Co. to American International Group Inc. are bracing for a surge in Indian claims to a 10-year high after unprecedented floods last week ravaged Chennai, the city home to factories of Ford Motor Co. and BMW AG.
Disruption in road, rail and communication networks hindered efforts by the automakers to resume production after they shut down factories on Dec. 2. Officials put the death toll at 277 from the deluge since the start of October as a threefold increase in seasonal rainfall brought the metropolis of 9 million to its knees. The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India estimated losses to businesses at more than 150 billion rupees ($2.3 billion).
The insurance industry expects 10 billion rupees in claims immediately, with most coming from residents who lost property such as motor vehicles, while businesses may claim a bigger share, said Sanjay Datta, head of underwriting at ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co. The disaster in Chennai brought back memories of a 2005 cloudburst in Mumbai that caused similar flooding, prompting 30 billion rupees of claims, he said.
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