CCRIF pays out more than $200,000 to Belize on excess rainfall parametric policy

The Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) has paid $203,136 to the Government of Belize on its excess rainfall parametric insurance policy, following three days of heavy rains during Tropical Storms Amanda and Cristobal.

Amanda was a tropical cyclone that originated in the Pacific Ocean and brought rains that affected Belize on May 30, before it weakened. The remnants of Amanda then reorganised to form Tropical Storm Cristobal in the Gulf of Mexico, becoming a cross-over cyclone from the Pacific to the Atlantic.

This payout was made on Belize’s 2019/20 excess rainfall policy, which the country has renewed for policy year 2020/21. It is the second payout that Belize has received from CCRIF, after it received a payout of $261,073 following Tropical Cyclone Earl in 2016.

Since its inception in 2007, CCRIF has made a total of 43 payouts for 21 events, including earthquakes, tropical cyclones and excess rainfall, to 14 member governments. In aggregate, payouts have totalled $155.8 million.

Belize is one of five pilot countries in the Caribbean that are participating in the Climate Risk Adaptation and Insurance in the Caribbean (CRAIC) project. The CRAIC project is being implemented by a partnership led by CCRIF, including the Munich Climate Insurance Initiative, ILO Impact Insurance, Munich Re and DHI.

The project receives funding from the International Climate Initiative of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety. It seeks to make an innovative microinsurance product, the Livelihood Protection Policy, available to individuals.