UAE weather live: Emirates hit by severe storms
Dubai’s severe floods should remind people of the importance of taking out home insurance, industry experts said.
The number of people in the UAE with the cover is “shockingly low”, with less than 15 per cent of UAE residents with home insurance, they say.
It is the trend across the Middle East. Inquiries about it only come during extreme weather events or fires.
But the cover could be a useful protection against the devastating floods across Dubai during the week.
“Take-up rates for home insurance are still shockingly low and we only seem to see an influx of enquiries whenever there is heavy rainfall, or news of a fire in an apartment block,” Andrea McNulty, head of product development at finance comparison site Yallacompare, told The National.
“Today there’ll be people facing the prospect of having to replace furniture, pay for alternative accommodation, replace food in a fridge/freezer that’s no longer running. A lot of the insurance policies will pay out in all of these instances.”
Home insurance typically can protect your property from risks including natural disasters, floods, theft and fire. People can take out cover to protect the building and also the contents.
Ms McNulty said there was “nowhere near enough” people with this type of cover, with less than 15 per cent of consumers in the UAE having a home insurance policy in place. In the UK, about 25 per cent of homes do not have any form of home insurance.
“It's one of those things that people will ‘eventually get around to’ but never end up purchasing,” she noted, stating calls to the company surged by 45 per cent since Tuesday and this was expected to continue into the weekend.
“A decent home insurance policy can cost from as little as Dh1 per day. Compared to the alternative of having to replace everything yourself if you don't have insurance, it's really a bargain. While home insurance might not fully undo the damage caused, it does provide a sense of security amid all the uncertainty.”
The aftermath
A major clean-up operation is now under way across Dubai, but evidence of the storms was still apparent across the country on Thursday, with some roads waterlogged, cars abandoned and homes under water.
The scale of the damage is still hard to assess. Ms McNulty pointed to Cyclone Gonu in 2007 that swept through the region. “That damage was estimated at over $4.2 billion,” she said.
Anthony Cerchiai, head of general insurance at Nexus Insurance, told The National it was too early to assess the scale of the cost but it could run into billions of dirhams.
“The best cure is prevention,” said Mr Cerchiai, also stating that home insurance was low in the UAE. “All the Middle East is underinsured as it is seen here mostly in terms of mandatory cover such as medical. It has not been popular."
Mr Cerchiai said calls to Nexus surged 10-fold since Tuesday and he urged people to also consider travel insurance as they would be in line to get compensation should problems arise. “Insurance is the proper way to do it,” he said.
Ms McNulty said insurance companies will be working “non-stop” to process claims and those affected should contact their company as soon as possible.
“Some insurers will have set time frames to notify them. This can be as low as 48 hours from when the loss occurred,” he said.
“Take lots of photographs of any damaged property. Don’t try to move a waterlogged vehicle yourself, you risk causing more damage."
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- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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