While local insurance companies anticipate that claims resulting from Hurricane Florence will be minimal, Colonial Insurance general manager Jennifer Murdoch says tropical storm Helene, which is now approaching Bermuda, is yet another reminder that the Island is exposed.

?We hope that people become more aware that they should have insurance in place and ensure it is adequate for their protection,? she said.

To date Colonial?s estimated total cost of Florence is $250,000. ?We have had a small number of home property claims reported to date with two vehicle claims and one marine claim,? she said. ?Of course more claims may be forthcoming.

Meanwhile Gerald Simons, president and CEO of rival Argus, did not reveal the claims figures for that company, only commenting that they were ?minimal?.

He did not comment on the type of claims received or their dollar value.

BF&M president and CEO John Wight said residents were more prepared to face Florence and took steps to prevent loss or damage to property.

?We know that we don?t have all the claims in yet but thus far we have about 50 Florence related claims with the majority being household claims of a minor nature.

?We expect to receive more as people over the weekend take the time to check out their boats, etc. Overall the Island came out of this very well.

?The preparation of homes and buildings was very good, due in large part to recent experiences with Fabian in 2003 and hurricanes since then that hit the Caribbean and the US.?

Michael Freisenbruch of Freisenbruch-Meyer Insurance Services said Florence should still serve as a reminder to residents to keep their insurance current and adequate.

?Reported claims arising from Hurricane Florence have been minimal to date,? he said.

?We commend Bermuda as a whole for the efforts made in securing their properties and wish to re-emphasise the need to remain vigilant as we have only reached the halfway point for this year?s hurricane season.

?For our clients who did unfortunately sustain damage, every effort is being made to inspect the damaged properties and effect repairs as soon as humanly possible.?

?We urge any of our clients who may have sustained damage and not yet reported it, to do so immediately.

C.N.A Butterfield & Son Limited operations manager Nathaniel Butterfield said the company had seen only a few relatively small claims come in by noon as of last Wednesday.

?While there may be some claims to come in from our direct clients, as well as from the companies we re-insure, we are hopeful that the total for this hurricane will be one of the smallest in the past decade.

?Although we have currently received less than $20,000 in claims, we expect this figure to rise although we don?t anticipate it to exceed $100,000.

?Any of our clients with claims who haven?t contacted us should do so as soon as possible so we can work towards getting their problems solved.?