Insurance companies across Bermuda have been busy processing claims from policyholders who suffered damage to their homes or vehicles during Hurricane Igor.

Insurers were open for business yesterday and their claims departments were taking calls from property, boat, car and bike owners who had been hit by the storm.

The damage caused by Hurricane Igor is expected to cost insurers less than $100 million due to the Island's building standards to protect structures from the wind, according to catastrophe modelling firm AIR Worldwide.

BF&M Ltd.'s team of 20 staff on duty had already received about 25 calls by 1 p.m. yesterday for relatively minor type claims and the insurer set up a one-day satellite office for policyholders based in St. George's and St. David's during the day to assess damaged property, according to president and chief executive officer John Wight.

"With the Causeway closed today, we set up a one-day satellite office for policyholders based in St. George's or St. David's who needed us to view their damaged property but thus far no reported claims but we expect this to change," he said.

Mr. Wight said his company expected to take more calls today once boat owners had had a chance to check out the state of their vessels and forecast the insured losses from Hurricane Igor to be "minimal" compared to those of Hurricane Fabian seven years ago.

"We will be responding tomorrow to more calls from customers once they have had an opportunity to travel to their boats, etc., to see whether moorings have held up.

"From an insurance perspective the Island has been very fortunate that Hurricane Igor was downgraded to a Category 1 when it passed over the Island. By comparison, Hurricane Fabian in 2003 was a Category 3 hurricane that caused insured losses in Bermuda of over $200 million. The insured losses from Hurricane Igor are obviously expected to be minimal by comparison."

BF&M was still writing policies for all three lines of its business last week and was busy fielding questions from policyholders from midday yesterday, as well as ensuring they had the proper coverage and receiving payments on overdue premiums.

Freisenbruch-Meyer, which had also been writing new business in the run up to the storm, was fully staffed yesterday and will be open for business tomorrow as well.

James Leman, Freisenbruch-Meyer Group's vice-president of group employee benefits, who was out in the field yesterday assessing the damage, said: "The claims are starting to come in now and we have received a few marine claims.

"We have people already in the east and west end of the Island to see if there is any way we can help.

"This is the brunt of it and we expect to receive more claims in the next few days."

AIR Worldwide said in an e-mailed statement yesterday that Bermuda's homes are "typically built of limestone or concrete blocks, and commercial buildings, which are typically reinforced concrete, and are required to be built to withstand sustained winds of 110 miles per hour".

Freisenbruch-Meyer customers can contact 296-3600 or email hurricaneclaims@fmgroup.bm to report a claim or ask any questions about their policy.