Monitoring of General Insurers' Compliance with Singapore General Insurance Code of Practice in Processing Claims

Mr Murali Pillai asked the Prime Minister (a) whether the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) monitors general insurers’ compliance of the requirements under Paragraph 6.2 of the Singapore General Insurance Code of Practice when they process claims; and (b) whether the MAS investigates complaints by claimants whose claims are not processed in accordance with the requirements.

Mr Lawrence Wong (for the Prime Minister): The Singapore General Insurance Code of Practice (Code) is issued by the General Insurance Association of Singapore (GIA) and sets out guidelines and standards as best practices for its member insurers to follow. Paragraph 6.2 of the Code relates to GIA member insurers’ commitment to process claims on a timely basis, with service standards stated therein. If a GIA member has not fulfilled its obligations with the Code, the policyholder may refer the matter to GIA.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in its Guidelines on Risk Management Practices for Insurance Business establishes supervisory expectations for all insurers to set out clear procedures for notification, assessment and settlement of claims, and monitor the claims handling process. MAS expects insurers to have in place an internal dispute resolution process to handle all consumer complaints and feedback independently, effectively and promptly. As part of MAS’ ongoing supervision of insurers, complaints received from consumers relating to non-adherence of disclosed service standards will be referred to the relevant insurer to handle and MAS will track that an appropriate response is provided to the consumer.