The company car insurer paid us the so-called undisputed amount. We received five or six thousand zlotys. Please see the photo – says Kacper Dyląg from Stronie Śląskie, who lost his belongings in the flood, to the tvn24.pl business editorial team. – The car is stuck in the building and it seems simple, right? However, it is not finished yet – it talks about the situation with the insurer.
A month ago, during the flood and after the dam burst in Stronie Śląskie (Lower Silesian Voivodeship), the Menos tourist facility was completely destroyed after 34 years of existence.
– We had two tourist sites: Menos, which is the most damaged, and Bolko in Bolesławowo, three kilometers away behind Stronie Śląskie. The second one is in much better condition after the flood. We are welcoming the first guests on Monday, which is a substitute for some normality – says Kacper Dyląg, owner, in an interview with the tvn24.pl business editorial team.
He says that “in the case of Menos, the entire building needs to be demolished, but we are not taking any action.” – Taking it apart is not a philosophy, but it is a matter of insurance. And what if the insurance company later says: you demolished the building, and in our opinion it was enough to put up two walls and we could continue functioning? And they won't pay the insurance? – he wonders.
“We know it will be very uphill”
Kacper Dyląg submitted applications to insurers immediately, the day after the first wave hit, i.e. on September 16.
– I went especially through the mountain because Stronie Śląskie was cut off from the telephone or the Internet. I filled out applications in the car to speed things up, he says.
He calculates how many insurers he will have to contact. The Menos building is insured with Compensa for over PLN 1.3 million. zloty. The same company insures the facility's equipment for PLN 300,000. zloty. The third insurance covers a company car that was smashed into the building by the flood wave. This issue is being considered by PZU. The amount is approximately PLN 34,000. zloty. The fourth policy is with Hestia for the amount of PLN 73,000. PLN and concerns photovoltaics on the roof in Menosa, which was leased. The fifth insurance is in Warta, it is equipment in Bolek for the amount of PLN 100,000. zloty
– So, of these five insurance policies, after almost a month after the flood, only PZU, the company car insurer, paid us the so-called undisputed amount. We received five or six thousand zlotys. Please see the photo. The car is stuck in the building and it seems simple, right? However, it is not finished yet, he notes.
The owner of tourist facilities points out that “other policies are still intact, although theoretically something is happening.” – This week, a gentleman from Hestia reached us, and a gentleman from Compensa also recently arrived. The insurance companies must have a very poor workforce, because our cases were taken over by their subcontractors. There is a different one in each case, because one subcontractor deals with the liquidation of damage to the equipment, the other to the building. Everything takes so long and seems complicated. We know that it will be very uphill – Kacper Dyląg assumes.
“We lost a business of enormous scale”
The man argues that “Menos was great, the business was good, so the one million three hundred thousand zlotys would be enough to wipe away tears, so to speak.” Although Mr. Kacper is aware that the insurer's expertise may be lower.
– We have been modernizing the building for over 30 years. We had a good reputation due to our location next to the swimming pool and sports hall, but also because we were visited by numerous federations of various sports: volleyball players, tennis players, and swimmers. We have never complained about occupancy. We lost a business on a huge scale, so no amount of insurance we are talking about here will bring us back – emphasizes Dyląg.
Now he is focusing on Bolek, the second object. – We have had it in our family for 30 years. Even Otylia Jędrzejczak, a famous swimming medalist in our country, organized swimming camps under her name last year – Mr. Kacper praises this place.
What insurers say
The business editorial team of tvn24.pl contacted insurance companies and asked what the settlement of damages from flood areas looks like.
The PZU press office told us that from September 13 to October 3 this year. they received a total of 39 thousand. reports, 80% of which cases issued decisions, paying a total of over PLN 180 million in advances and compensation.
“We have implemented the so-called fast track service in relation to flood damage – initial decisions on the payment of advances or compensation are made on the basis of damage documentation (including photos or videos) and estimates made by the injured customers themselves and after a short interview with them,” we read in the correspondence from the PZU press office.
As added, employees in the PZU Mobile Offices received damage reports directly on site and, during a conversation with the injured party, based on the documents and photos provided, made the decision to pay compensation. The insurer boasts that thanks to such activities, “advances or compensation (so-called undisputed amounts) reach them even on the same day or within a few days of reporting.”
When we ask about the time it takes for them to fully adjust the damage and pay compensation, we receive the answer that “it is impossible to give a general time for handling the damage, considering how different they are – from damaged smaller movables and vehicles through flooded basements or fragments of real estate.” to completely destroyed houses.
The tvn24.pl editorial team also contacted Hestia, Compensa and Warta. By the time the article was published, we had not received answers to our questions.
According to data from the Polish Chamber of Insurance, by October 10, 2024, insurance companies had paid full compensation, undisputed amounts or advance payments of PLN 42.5 thousand. owners of destroyed houses and apartments.
The PIU statement added that data from the Chancellery of the Prime Minister show that 749 towns are under a state of natural disaster. The number of people directly affected by the floods was estimated at 57,000.
“What we are currently observing in southern Poland is the tragedy of thousands of people who lost their belongings as a result of the flood. In such circumstances, insurers operate in an extraordinary manner. Our goal is to quickly minimize the financial effects of the disaster and help them return to everyday functioning, regardless of from state aid,” said Jan Grzegorz Prądzyński, president of the management board of the Polish Chamber of Insurance.
Compensation from the government. “There are two pathologies here”
Last week, regulations regarding aid for flood victims came into force. They include, among others, support for borrowers, an allowance of PLN 1,000, additional vacation days and assistance for entrepreneurs. There is a special hotline for flood victims.
The special act also includes a support mechanism for entrepreneurs affected by the effects of floods. They are to receive PLN 16,000. PLN for each person registered for insurance in ZUS or the equivalent of 75 percent average monthly revenue achieved a year earlier.
Kacper Dyląg believes that the compensation offered under the special act is a drop in the ocean of needs. – There are two pathologies here. The first is that if the entrepreneur was ten meters away and was not flooded, he is not a victim. And yet customers won't come to him for the next five months because the bridge has broken. He is not physically harmed, but he also has employees, he has to maintain the facility, and he is not entitled to any help – he explains.
Indicates the next problem. – The second pathology is that I, who am injured, have to guarantee that I will keep all my jobs in order to get help. In my case there are fifteen of them, but I lost one object. So how to do it? – Dyląg spreads his hands.
Want to share an important topic? Contact the author of the text: joanna.rubin@wbd.com
Main photo source: Private materials Kacper Dyląg