CARD MBA, CPMI aid victims of Typhoon Maring in North Luzon

Posted on November 12, 2021

Following Typhoon Maring’s exit from the Philippine Area of Responsibility on October 12, 2021, CARD Mutual Benefit Association (CARD MBA) and CARD Pioneer Microinsurance, Inc. (CPMI) immediately took action through its disaster response initiatives to typhoon victims in North Luzon.

As of October 29, 2021, CPMI has reported 757 affected farmers from Isabela, Ilocos Norte, and Ilocos Sur, and has disbursed a total of PhP 3,417,500 to 609 claims payment to policyholders in North Luzon. These farmers, who were affected by Typhoon Maring, received their claims from CPMI’s BINHI crop insurance.

According to Vener Abellera, President and General Manager of CaMIA, the insurance agency that distributes CPMI insurance products, BINHI is one of CPMI’s microinsurance products dedicated to CARD agri-loan borrowers, whose rice and corn crops have been devastated by the typhoon.

“We acknowledge the difficulties of our farmers when typhoons arise. BINHI was designed for farmers as they are one of the most vulnerable sectors when a typhoon strikes. This protects the livelihood of our client-farmers livelihood and ensures that they can recover from the aftereffects of typhoons, the habagat, or even LPA or low-pressure areas,” Abellera said.

Marilou Garcia, a rice farmer from Nueva Era, Ilocos Norte, recollected how her one-hectare rice farm was flooded by Typhoon Maring which swamped their area for three days. After the typhoon, an officer inspected the damage to her farm, validated their claims, and disbursed PhP 10,000 from BINHI.

“After submitting their requirements, I got a text message from CPMI to get our claims from a remittance center. It didn’t take a week after the validation before we got our claims. I am really grateful for CPMI for covering our losses, considering the damage to our crops and the expensive fertilizer we have bought,” Nanay Marilou shared.

On the other hand, CARD MBA also provides its calamity-struck members with cash assistance through the CARD MRI Disaster Relief Assistance Program or CDRAP. Among the calamities covered by the insurance are earthquake, fire, typhoon, and flood.

As of October 26, 2021, the Association has reported 31,307 members who were affected by Typhoon Maring. A total of PhP 3,755,520 was disbursed to 31,296 members of CARD MBA.

“Since 2006, CARD MBA has already assisted families affected by calamities through CDRAP. Alongside CPMI’s BINHI, CDRAP aims to give immediate response to our members and assure them that they can rely on us when disasters strike,” CARD MBA Jocelyn D. Dequito said.

Disbursement of claims from BINHI and CDRAP is currently ongoing for those affected by Typhoon Maring in North Luzon, Typhoon Kiko in Ilocos Norte, and Typhoon Lannie in Oriental Mindoro and Eastern Samar.