France riots: loss estimate

As at 7 July 2023, French insurers had received 11 300 claims related to damage caused by the urban violence that has been raging in the country since 27 June.

Most claims (55%) concern professional property, followed by government-owned property (35%).

The cost of the damage is estimated at 650 million EUR (713.2 million USD), exceeding that caused by the 2005 riots and the 2018 yellow vest movement, which amounted to 204 million EUR (222.3 million USD) and 249 million EUR (271.3 million USD) respectively.

In a bid to support the victims of the recent riots, the French government and France Assureurs have called on market players to implement support measures including:

• extending the claims notification deadline to 30 days
• speeding up the claims process
• advance payments for the most difficult situations
• case-by-case consideration of the situation of small business owners, so as to reduce the impact of contractual deductibles.

For the record, the riots broke out on 27 June 2023 following the death of a teenager in Nanterre.