Natural disaster order (French CatNat decree)
The interministerial order that declares a state of natural disaster in given municipalities for a specific event and period, the prerequisite for any compensation under the French CatNat scheme.
In France, the natural disaster cover included in property policies applies only after an interministerial order declaring a state of natural disaster is published in the Official Journal. The procedure starts with the municipality, which files a request with the prefecture; an interministerial commission then examines the abnormal intensity of the natural agent based on technical reports, rainfall, flooding, ground movement or drought, and the ministers sign the order listing municipalities, peril and dates. Until the order is published, the insurer cannot pay under the scheme, and a refusal leaves the policyholder without cover for that peril. After publication, the insured has a deadline to report the loss, and the insurer a deadline to pay. The procedure is criticized as slow and opaque, especially for drought, where the meteorological criteria used lead to many refusals.
Act No. 2021-1837 of December 28, 2021, known as the Baudu Act, extended from ten to thirty days after publication of the order the time the insured has to report the loss, and to twenty-four months the time municipalities have to file their request.
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