Chinese insurers are stepping up efforts to offer quick support following the crash last Monday of a China Eastern Airlines plane with 132 people aboard. They have begun verifying information of insured passengers and preparing compensation payments. Here are some facts about the process.

Who underwrote MU5735?

The People's Insurance Co (Group) of China Ltd, one of China's leading insurers, is the chief underwriter of the plane that crashed. The company has started its emergency mechanism for major accident claims and established a special working group.

Subsidiary companies of Ping An Insurance Group Co also took steps related to the underwriting of the flight. The Guangdong branch of Ping An Property & Casualty Co Ltd jointly insures all risks and liabilities for the fuselage.

China Pacific Insurance Co is another insurer of the flight. After the accident, it started an internal verification process about airframe, group accident, flight accident insurance and other types of insurance with institutions in Yunnan province.

How much airframe compensation is estimated?

The types of aircraft insurance involved in this crash are mainly airframe and aviation liability insurance, which usually includes passenger liability and third party liability insurance.

According to industry estimates, the average price of the Boeing 737 series ranges from 467 million to 676 million yuan ($73 million to $106 million).

Taking into account depreciation at time of the flight, the compensation amount of the coinsurer and its reinsurer alone will reach hundreds of millions of yuan.

What compensation will families receive?

In general, families of air crash victims and injured passengers in domestic flights can receive two types of compensation: one is the compensation borne by the carrier (the airline); the other is the compensation borne by the insurance company, i.e. aviation accident insurance.

According to a regulation issued by China’s aviation authority in 2006, families of air crash victims can be compensated up to 400,000 yuan ($62,982) each from airlines. It also sets the maximum compensation for damage on each passenger's carry-on baggage as well as checked luggage, at 3,000 yuan per person and 100 yuan per kilogram respectively.

However, in practice, the compensation standard changes with the consumption index. So the actual amount of compensation is often higher than the maximum limit.

Whether passengers can get compensation from personal safety insurance, accident insurance or other types of insurance depends on the specific rules of the policies in terms of their coverage for aviation accidents.

Industry insiders predict insurance companies will pay a total of 100 to 300 million yuan for the MU5735 plane crash, assuming each passenger on board can be compensated 1 to 2 million yuan.

How soon will compensation be paid?

Usually after receiving a compensation request from the insured or the beneficiary, the insurer shall make the approval in time; if the situation is complicated, approval shall be made within thirty days; if the case belongs to insurance liability, the insurer shall fulfill the compensation obligation within 10 days of reaching the compensation agreement with the insured or the beneficiary.

The day after the crash, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission called on the country's insurance industry to make an all-out effort to provide proper insurance claim service for the crash. After the accident, 21 insurance institutions launched on-site investigations and participated in the rescue.

After all passengers onboard the plane were confirmed dead on Saturday night, China Eastern Airlines has set up a special team responsible for compensation and opened a hotline for victims' families. Convenience will be offered to families, and the company will take the initiative to discuss the situation with them either online or offline.