With the 2025 hurricane season intensifying, the Insurance coverage Affiliation of Jamaica (IAJ) is sounding the alarm: an estimated 95% of insured residential properties in Jamaica are underinsured, leaving hundreds of householders weak to monetary catastrophe.
The startling determine is on the coronary heart of the IAJ’s new public training marketing campaign, “Actual Worth. Actual Protection.” Designed to achieve Jamaicans each regionally and abroad, the initiative urges property homeowners to urgently reassess their insurance coverage protection earlier than storms, fires, or floods strike.
The message follows the devastation left by Hurricane Beryl, which tore by sections of southern and central Jamaica in 2024. The Class 4 storm destroyed houses, flattened crops, and brought on widespread energy outages — a painful reminder of how shortly catastrophe can strike and the steep price of restoration for these inadequately insured.
“Yearly we see the identical factor — policyholders insure their houses or business properties primarily based on outdated values and by no means revisit them,” stated Rosemarie Henry, President of the IAJ. “When a hurricane hits, the insurance coverage payout is nowhere close to what’s wanted to rebuild or restore. That hole can devastate lives.”
At the moment, solely about 20% of Jamaica’s residential properties are insured, and even amongst these, the overwhelming majority fall wanting true alternative price. The IAJ factors to previous disasters like Hurricane Gilbert in 1988 and Hurricane Ivan in 2004, which uncovered simply how widespread and damaging underinsurance might be.
On the root of the issue is a typical false impression: that when a property is insured, it stays adequately protected. However with inflation, rising building prices, and rising property values, outdated insurance policies can shortly turn out to be nugatory in a disaster.
“Think about shopping for insurance coverage 10 years in the past, by no means updating the worth, and at present your roof is blown off in a Class 4 hurricane,” Henry defined. “The payout gained’t cowl half of what you should rebuild. That’s the fact for too many Jamaicans.”
The IAJ’s name to motion is easy: “Don’t Guess. Get Lined.” Property homeowners are urged to:
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Evaluation their coverage particulars and valuation date
– Commercial –
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Acquire a present skilled valuation
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Contact their insurer to replace their protection
“The hurricane season doesn’t wait so that you can prepare,” Henry warned. “Your coverage ought to replicate at present’s actuality, not yesterday’s estimate.”
