ADVERTISEMENTChinese insurance companies have started paying compensation to the families of passengers on missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, according to state media agency Xinhua.
The plane is presumed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean on March 8, killing all 239 people aboard.
Seven passengers’ families have reportedly received 4.17 million yuan (around 486,600 euros) in compensation from the country’s largest insurance company, China Life.
The insurers said they had 32 clients on board the flight, with an estimated total compensation of approximately 9 million yuan (1.1 million euros).
A company spokesperson told Reuters: “China Life is deeply grieved at the news and will ensure compensation and all other related services are fully implemented.”
Meanwhile, New China Life Insurance Co. Ltd. will compensate the families of nine further clients on board the plane with around 1 million yuan (some 117,000 euros), according to a public relations official from the firm.
China Pacific Insurance Co., Ltd. is said to have offered its first compensation payment of 525,000 yuan (61,300 euros), while Sunshine Insurance has reportedly offered 500,000 yuan (58,400 euros) for a family of three.
More than 150 passengers aboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were Chinese nationals.
The flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing is believed to have crashed thousands of miles off
course.