Letter of the Day | Resilience is measured at the speed of settlement

THE EDITOR, Madam:

I am writing with reference to The Gleaner news report title, ‘Six in 10 tourism insurance claims still unresolved’, published on September 28. This should be read as more than an industry dispute. It is evidence that Jamaica’s disaster infrastructure has a missing layer.

Hotels held cover, declared their exposure, and filed in good faith. Many then financed repairs from their own resources to reopen. In effect, operators have become their own insurers of last resort, which inverts the product they bought. When 61 per cent of claimants are still waiting and two-thirds expect to recover less than three-quarters of their losses, the hurricane does not end when the winds stop. It continues as a working-capital crisis in every unpaid room and deferred rehire.

We measure preparedness in building codes, shelters and forecast lead times. We should measure it in settlement performance too. Jamaica could lead the Caribbean by requiring public reporting on commercial claims after declared disasters: how many remain open, average time to payment, and deductions applied against policy terms. The Financial Services Commission’s review of the average clause is a start, but sunlight should be permanent, not a post-storm initiative.

Recovery capital that arrives late is not recovery capital. The hotels that rebuilt on their own balance sheets kept the season alive. The system owes them the same urgency they showed their guests and employees.

JACKIE OMOTALADE

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania