Jubilee Health, GA Life lead in insurance claims payouts

Insurance Regulatory Authority CEO Godfrey Kiptum. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Jubilee Health Insurance, GA Life Assurance Limited, and Resolution Insurance Company had the best claims settlement record in the insurance sector in the first quarter ended March, according to regulatory data.

The three companies led in paying most of the claims from customers in the report by the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) covering general, life (long term), and general (non-liability) categories.

GA Life paid 99.4 percent of the claims it received in the quarter, ranking first in the long-term business. It was followed by Capex Life Assurance Company at 97.5 percent and UAP Life Assurance Company (89.5 percent).

Jubilee Health led in the general insurance non-liability claims — paid to policyholders— category in the quarter under review when it settled 90.7 percent of compensation requests it received.

It was followed by Resolution at 88.9 percent and Allianz Insurance Company (82.9 percent). Resolution subsequently collapsed suddenly in early April after running out of cash to meet its obligations.

The insolvent underwriter had also led in the general insurance liability — paid to third parties — category where it settled 95.8 percent of the claims submitted in the review period when it far outpaced its rivals.

Madison Insurance Company was second, paying 61.5 percent of claims while CIC General Insurance Company was third with a 27.2 payout rate. This category of general insurance category, as a whole, had the worst claims settlement of just 6.9 percent.

Most of the underwriters paid less than 20 percent of the claims filed. The IRA tracks the efficiency of paying clients which is the most important factor for policyholders.

There have been many customer complaints against insurers revolving around rejection of claims, delayed payments, and a drastic reduction of the expected compensation for losses incurred.

Some insurers on the other hand have alleged that they are the target of fraudulent claims.

The claims payment ratio is the number of claims settled against the total number of filings for compensation recorded in the review period.

“In the first quarter, the claims payment ratio for general liability claims decreased to 6.9 percent (9.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021),” IRA said.

“The claims payment ratio for general non-liability claims remained stagnant at 77.1 percent in the first quarter. The claims payment ratio for the long-term insurance business decreased to 70.6 percent compared to 74.6 observed in the previous quarter.”

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