Know more about medical insurance: *** I lens A wise consumer should not just compare medical insurance on the sole basis of price difference, but should instead study the terms in details, writes a veteran insurance trainer and educator in I lens, the newsletter published by the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance ( OCI ). In the feature article, Mrs Irene Wong, a Chartered Insurance Practitioner, gives practical advice to consumers on what areas they should take heed of in scouring the market for medical insurance cover. The insurance buyers who want overseas cover, consultation with specialists, Chinese herbalists, bonesetters, etc must check their policy cover carefully because these are only included by some of the insurers, the article reads. Moreover, they should check against those exclusions before deciding to buy. The general exclusions include, inter alia, pre-existing conditions and congenital abnormalities, pregnancy and fertility/infertility treatment, cosmetic surgery and routine medical examinations. Over half of the 214 complaints for the various types of insurance dispute received by the Insurance Claims Complaints Bureau in 1999 related to the interpretation of policy terms and non-disclosure of material facts. Therefore, the best practice for a buyer is to study the wording of the application form and the policy specimen carefully, and clarify with your agent or the insurer in case of any doubt, Mrs Wong added. Besides the feature, another short article entitled Poaching of Agents and Twisting of Policies should provide policyholders with helpful guidance on what questions to consider when being approached by insurance agents for replacement policies.
These agents may have changed their principals and so tend to induce their ex-clients to switch policies to their new principals. Indeed, to prevent twisting or transplanting which may involve misrepresentations or non-disclosures, the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers has issued a Code of Practice for Life Insurance Replacement ( Code ). Under the Code, a Customer Protection Declaration Form must be completed to ensure that an insurance agent has clearly explained to the policyholder the important consequences and potential disadvantages of replacing an existing policy. The I lens also brings home to its readers news on the latest legislative development and its impact on the insurance industry, such as the enactment of the Chinese Medicine Ordinance and the Electronic Transactions Ordinance; the visits and exchanges made by the OCI with international bodies; and the publicity efforts overseas to promote Hong Kong as a regional insurance centre The quarterly newsletter aims to promote public understanding of insurance and communication within the insurance industry. It is hoped that the general public and trade participants can make use of it to keep abreast of new developments in the industry, and to reflect any suggestions to the OCI. Copies of the bilingual I lens are available free of charge from the district offices, the Consumer Council and the OCI from tomorrow (August 22). The newsletter and details of the quarterly statistics on Hong Kong Insurance Industry are also available for downloading from the OCI s homepage (http://www.info.gov.hk/oci). For enquiries, please contact the OCI at 2867 3511. End/Monday, August 21, 2000
Provisional Statistics on Hong Kong General Insurance Business Direct & Reinsurance Inward Business (HK$'000) Gross Net Gross Net Net Earned Commissions Commissions Gross Net Net Claims Management * Underwriting Class of Business Premiums Premiums Premiums Payable Payable Claims Paid Claims Paid Incurred Expenses Profit / (Loss) Accident & Health 1,999,485 1,601,419 1,425,043 315,879 206,693 1,077,862 910,296 917,906 250,980 49,464 Motor Vehicle, Damage & Liability 1,329,348 1,096,504 1,074,266 353,098 303,068 1,141,117 835,062 683,556 168,554-80,912 Aircraft, Damage & Liability 8,464 3,024 3,754 2,194 652 7,083 2,345 2,042 262 798 Ships, Damage & Liability 371,167 221,437 205,757 45,607 21,258 233,874 126,549 150,178 29,433 4,888 Goods in Transit 537,309 396,679 392,073 114,863 82,219 194,181 125,258 131,940 80,114 97,800 Property Damage 2,258,657 1,281,382 1,239,667 755,801 451,034 1,083,044 438,739 304,637 280,213 203,783 General Liability 1,897,026 1,285,739 1,160,763 371,166 239,763 1,624,276 1,053,643 1,174,951 229,779-483,730 Pecuniary Loss 300,345 102,710 80,496 43,994 3,066 226,003 75,254 22,074 23,614 31,742 Non - Proportional Treaty Reinsurance 68,765 64,370 63,008 4,075 4,159 73,349 72,190 46,701 2,722 9,426 Proportional Treaty Reinsurance 179,923 147,452 124,459 81,255 73,264 144,317 129,084 121,959 16,542-87,306 Total 8,950,489 6,200,716 5,769,286 2,087,932 1,385,176 5,805,106 3,768,420 3,555,944 1,082,213-254,047 * Underwriting Profit / (Loss) is calculated by subtracting "Net Commissions Payable", "Net Claims Incurred" & "Management Expenses" from "Net Earned Premiums" as reported by insurers. Statistics contained herein are compiled from statistical information provided by insurers in their quarterly returns to the Insurance Authority. The statistics are provisional and unaudited, and prepared on a calendar year basis. While due care is taken in the compilation of the statistics, the Insurance Authority disclaims any warranties or representations of any kind with regard to such information.
Provisional Statistics on Hong Kong General Insurance Business Direct Business (HK$'000) Gross Net Gross Net Net Earned Commissions Commissions Gross Net Net Claims Management Underwriting Class of Business Premiums Premiums Premiums Payable Payable Claims Paid Claims Paid Incurred Expenses Profit / (Loss) Accident & Health 1,876,330 1,500,814 1,326,508 285,765 182,934 1,016,429 861,132 864,324 245,123 34,127 Motor Vehicle, Damage & Liability 1,226,276 1,011,999 984,761 329,365 284,341 1,028,264 728,731 597,920 158,038-55,538 Aircraft, Damage & Liability 1,038 84 786 53-151 1,537 121 122 144 671 Ships, Damage & Liability - Statutory 9,034 6,321 5,773 1,315 917 7,971 6,555 6,958 1,739-3,841 - Others 272,651 161,542 158,933 30,887 11,961 180,914 87,698 118,868 17,292 10,812 Goods in Transit 445,181 329,047 329,077 92,236 64,581 157,245 97,531 86,567 71,433 106,496 Property Damage 1,620,600 882,992 845,360 580,441 336,565 724,254 222,421 127,665 218,313 162,817 General Liability - Statutory 1,314,447 992,985 888,830 267,958 207,523 1,332,761 900,376 999,600 156,686-474,979 - Others 439,620 168,574 155,842 75,602 9,216 181,862 50,225 78,210 60,793 7,623 Pecuniary Loss 227,157 51,940 46,517 32,312-2,343 133,877 24,601 13,174 17,339 18,347 Total 7,432,334 5,106,298 4,742,387 1,695,934 1,095,544 4,765,114 2,979,391 2,893,408 946,900-193,465
Provisional Statistics on Hong Kong General Insurance Business Reinsurance Inward Business (HK$'000) Gross Net Gross Net Net Earned Commissions Commissions Gross Net Net Claims Management Underwriting Class of Business Premiums Premiums Premiums Payable Payable Claims Paid Claims Paid Incurred Expenses Profit / (Loss) Accident & Health 123,155 100,605 98,535 30,114 23,759 61,433 49,164 53,582 5,857 15,337 Motor Vehicle, Damage & Liability 103,072 84,505 89,505 23,733 18,727 112,853 106,331 85,636 10,516-25,374 Aircraft, Damage & Liability 7,426 2,940 2,968 2,141 803 5,546 2,224 1,920 118 127 Ships, Damage & Liability 89,482 53,574 41,051 13,405 8,380 44,989 32,296 24,352 10,402-2,083 Goods in Transit 92,128 67,632 62,996 22,627 17,638 36,936 27,727 45,373 8,681-8,696 Property Damage 638,057 398,390 394,307 175,360 114,469 358,790 216,318 176,972 61,900 40,966 General Liability 142,959 124,180 116,091 27,606 23,024 109,653 103,042 97,141 12,300-16,374 Pecuniary Loss 73,188 50,770 33,979 11,682 5,409 92,126 50,653 8,900 6,275 13,395 Non - Proportional Treaty Reinsurance 68,765 64,370 63,008 4,075 4,159 73,349 72,190 46,701 2,722 9,426 Proportional Treaty Reinsurance 179,923 147,452 124,459 81,255 73,264 144,317 129,084 121,959 16,542-87,306 Total 1,518,155 1,094,418 1,026,899 391,998 289,632 1,039,992 789,029 662,536 135,313-60,582
Provisional Statistics on Hong Kong Long Term Insurance Business New Business (cumulative for the year) Class of Business Sum Assured Premiums/Contributions (HK$'000) No of Policies No of Lives (HK$'000) Annualized Single Transferred A - Individual life 323,995 129,366,207 2,461,808 80,035 0 A - Individual annuity 5 418 104 0 A - Group life and annuity (non-employer group) 96 26,129 5,024,336 8,550 1,874 0 B - Marriage and birth 602 4,665 0 0 C - Linked long term 828,752 1,020,695 0 D - Permanent health 19,008 143,174 0 0 E - Tontines 0 0 0 0 F - Capital redemption 0 0 0 0 G - Retirement scheme management category I 355 11,536 237,686 7,596 922,775 H - Retirement scheme management category II 1 7 133 0 819 I - Retirement scheme management category III 1,870 100,717 16,606,202 93,714 0 0 Total 345,932 138,389 150,996,745 3,778,900 1,110,304 923,594
Summary on January - June 2000 Provisional Statistics Hong Kong Insurance Business Highlights 2000 1999 Jan-Jun Jan-Jun Growth ($ m) ($ m) General Business Gross Premiums 8,950 8,917 0.4% Net Premiums 6,201 6,096 1.7% Underwriting Profit/(Loss) -254-71 -257.7% Long Term Business (New Business) Office Premiums (Total) 5,813 5,087 14.3% Office Premiums (Individual Life Business) 4,396 4,358 0.9% General Business Gross Premiums Net Premiums 2000 1999 2000 1999 Jan-Jun Jan-Jun Growth Jan-Jun Jan-Jun Growth Class of Business ($ m) ($ m) ($ m) ($ m) Accident & Health 1,999 1,917 4.3% 1,601 1,576 1.6% Motor Vehicle 1,329 1,335-0.4% 1,097 1,046 4.9% Goods in Transit 537 499 7.6% 397 368 7.9% Property Damage 2,259 2,522-10.4% 1,281 1,386-7.6% General Liability 1,897 1,728 9.8% 1,286 1,181 8.9% Others 929 916 1.4% 539 539 0.0% Total 8,950 8,917 0.4% 6,201 6,096 1.7% Long Term Business (New Business) Office Premiums 2000 1999 Jan-Jun Jan-Jun Growth Class of Business ($ m) ($ m) Individual Life (Non-Linked) 2,547 2,764-7.9% Individual Life (Linked) 1,849 1,594 16.0% Group Life and Annuity 104 99 5.1% Retirement Scheme 1,169 499 134.3% Others 144 131 9.9% Total 5,813 5,087 14.3%