INSURERS and mutual benefit associations (MBAs) scored higher in the Asean Corporate Governance Scorecard (ACGS) for the year 2019 but the Insurance Commission said there is still room for improvement, especially in terms of disclosure and transparency. The insurance industry and MBAs collectively registered an average ACGS score of 45.9 in 2019, up by 3.36 points from 42.54 in the previous year. The 2019 assessment conducted by the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) covered a total of 119 entities regulated by the IC, of which 56 are non-life insurers, 32 are life insurers, and 31 are MBAs. The IC attributed the increase in the total average score to the Commission’s issuance of Circular Letter No. 2021-26 that mandated the creation and maintenance of company websites. However, Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa noted that the ICD report for 2019 also revealed the area of Disclosure and Transparency or the disclosure of corporate governance-related documents is of “special concern.”

The insurance industry has been revolutionised through the introduction of insurtech. Reducing the time it takes for customers to be given a response, along with reducing operational costs are only a couple of the many advantages technology in the insurance sector has enabled. An important area that needs to benefit from the introduction of insurtech is regulatory checks as the right technology solution will automate much of the standard checks and business workflows that surround compliance, freeing up time for brokers and insurers to work on their products and ultimately spend more time on their customers.

THE insurance industry in the Philippines is one of the most varied and comprehensive in the Southeast Asian region, and includes not only conventional life and non-life insurance, but also composite companies, pre-need insurers, mutual benefit associations (MBAs), health maintenance organizations (HMOs), and micro- and macro-insurers. Except for the pre-need segment, which has been gradually shrinking as alternative insurance products are introduced, all of these businesses have enjoyed strong growth in the past decade. Regulatory developments The insurance industry is regulated by the Insurance Commission (IC), which was created by the 1974 Insurance Code of the Philippines. The IC's regulatory responsibilities have expanded over the years along with the growth of the industry that introduced new forms of insurance. In 2009, the Pre-need Code placed pre-need insurance under the IC's authority, while Republic Act (RA) 10607, known as the Amended Insurance Code and signed into law in August 2013, changed a number of key requirements for insurers and further expanded the IC's oversight. In 2015, the regulation and supervision of the country's HMOs was also placed under the IC, by an executive order issued by then-president Benigno Aquino 3rd.

Insurance companies paid out PHP3.89bn ($81m) in claims related to COVID-19 last year, with nearly a third of the amount or PHP1.22bn being death benefits. Health maintenance organisations (HMO), which are regulated by the Insurance Commission, shouldered almost half or PHP1.91bn of the total claims paid during the first full year of the pandemic, reported the Philippine Inquirer.

Insurance payouts for Covid-19-related claims reached P3.89 billion last year, the Insurance Commission (IC) announced on Tuesday. Health maintenance organizations (HMOs) accounted for the biggest share at P1.91 billion, or 49 percent of the total, the regulator said in a statement. Following were life insurers, P1.46 billion, or 38 percent; mutual benefit associations (MBAs), P354.90 million, or 9 percent; and nonlife insurers, P160.20 million, or 4 percent. Covid-19-related death benefit claims totaled P1.22 billion in 2020. Covid-19-related claims for in-patient benefits (P1.18 billion) and out-patient benefits (P933.7 million) were next. "(W)e hope that the aggregate amount of Covid-19-related claims paid in 2020 by life and nonlife insurers, MBAs and HMOs either within or outside contractual obligations amounting to P3.89 billion, which by itself is no small feat, will continue to inspire consumer confidence in said four respondent sectors and will educate our fellow Filipinos of the benefits of availing [of] the insurance and HMO products and the benefits of MBA membership," Insurance Commissioner Dennis Funa said in the statement.

INSURANCE PAYOUTS related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have reached P3.89 billion as of end-2020, a survey conducted by the Insurance Commission (IC) showed. Out of the 111 regulated entities, 69 respondents reported to have received COVID-19-related claims — particularly from 22 life insurers, 15 nonlife insurers, 18 mutual benefit associations (MBAs), and 14 health maintenance organizations (HMOs). “The aggregate COVID-19-related claims paid by the HMO sector per the three surveys accounted for 49% of said amount, or approximately P1.91 billion,” Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa said in a statement on Tuesday.

MANILA – An executive of the Insurance Commission (IC) has highlighted the importance for insurance companies to leverage on technology, among others, to boost their sales during the pandemic and drive the sector’s growth. In a webinar jointly hosted by the Department of Finance (DOF), IC, and SGV & Co. on Tuesday, IC Deputy Commissioner Ferdinand George Florendo said tapping technology would be “very advantageous” for insurance companies not only for data but for sales. “People are now risk-averse and would prefer, sometimes, to also deal using technology,” he said. This change has been cited by several insurance company executives in the past, noting the faster they adapt to this change, the better their processes and sales would improve amid the new normal. Florendo underscored the need for companies to hike market awareness for risk.

MANILA, Philippines — Reinsurance demand in Asia-Pacific has increased amid rising natural calamities that affect economies in the region. GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company in the UK, said domestic insurers seek financial resources to cover massive risks as the frequency of catastrophes in the region has been on the rise. Reinsurance is defined as the practice where insurers transfer portions of their risk portfolios to other parties by some form of agreement to reduce the likelihood of paying a large obligation resulting from an insurance claim. Asia-Pacific is not new to calamities amid strong typhoons, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions that are happening in the region.

Trust is the cornerstone of employee engagement and workplace productivity. According to an HBR study titled "Want Your Employees to Trust You? Show You Trust Them," a lack of trust between managers and employees can have a ripple effect. Employees who feel that they are trusted by their managers have more confidence in the workplace, are more productive, exert more effort, and go above and beyond what is expected from their role. While managers do a lot to gain the trust of their employees, and also trust their employees, it is important that this trust is manifested in a form which is perceivable by the employee. Unless and until an employee "feels" the trust, s/he will not reciprocate it.

In the early stages of the pandemic, the realities of indefinite remote work were not yet clear to many workers. At first, the set up may have sounded ideal: no commute, sweat pants all day and a break from heading into the office. But as the pandemic lingers, with no definitive end in sight, fatigue and burnout have surfaced as an important issues affecting many remote employees. “It’s harder now to compartmentalize our lives — work versus personal. When you work from home, your attention’s split — your dog’s barking, your partner might be working next to you, your children are running around — your concentration demands more emotional energy,” explains Kelcey Stratton, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at Michigan Medicine whose training focuses on stress, trauma and resilience. “By the end of the day, we’re drained.”