Page 6 - LIAM Annual Report 2021

Life insurance association of MaLaysia 4

President’s Message

The total in force premiums increased by 8% from RM43.4 coVid-19 relief Measures
billion in 2020 to RM46.8 billion in 2021. The sum assured in
force grew by 5.6% amounting to RM1,779.5 billion in 2021 The industry together with its 16 member companies had
compared with RM1,685.8 billion in 2020 while the total been proactive in implementing additional COVID-19 relief
number of policies in force registered a modest increase of measures to assist policyholders affected by the pandemic.
4.1% from 12.8 million policies in 2020 to 13.4 million policies The initiatives included:
in 2021.
i. A three-month deferment of premium payment for
raising tHe standards and Best affected individuals, the self-employed and small and
Practices of insurance industry medium enterprises (SMEs), which was offered until
31 December 2021. About 1.2 million policyholders
The formation of the Professional Standards Committee benefited from the initiative with a total deferred value
(PSC) in August 2021, to take on the functions of the former amounting to over RM3.7 billion.
Financial Services Professional Board (FSPB) (which had ceased
operations in December 2020), is a significant development ii. The introduction of other forms of support to help
in pursuit of the industry’s agenda to advocate professional policyholders keep their policies in force like the
ethical standards among life insurance companies in Malaysia. restructuring of policy features, lowering sum assured, etc.
The PSC was formalised following the engagement session
with FIDE forum on 20 May 2021 and the meeting with BNM iii. Various schemes rolled out by individual insurers to aid
on 26 August 2021. policyholders affected by COVID-19 such as financial
assistance for hospitalisation, lump sum death benefits
The PSC will focus on developing and advocating professional and reimbursement of medical bills and relief funds when
ethical standards and best practices to engender trust in diagnosed with COVID-19 or under quarantine.
the industry. The first meeting of the PSC was held on 15
September 2021 to prioritize key areas proposed based on a iv. Individual insurers also effectuated various schemes
survey conducted among LIAM members. The survey identified to aid policyholders for side effects arising from the
the key areas to develop Standards and Best Practices for National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme with benefits
the industry, which include Treating Customers Fairly (TCF), like hospitalisation allowances and lump sum death
Climate Change and ESG Policy, Professional Standards for compensation packages.
Intermediaries and many others.
relief Measures for flood Victims
industry’s ongoing efforts to aid
PoLicyHoLders during PandeMic On 18 December 2021, Malaysia was hit by severe floods
which destroyed properties, business premises, public assets
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia and and infrastructure. Thousands of people were displaced from
the demanding phase that followed, the life insurance industry their homes.
has played a significant role in assisting policyholders.
Consequently, many affected policyholders faced difficulties in
rM10 Million coVid-19 test fund paying their premiums on time.

A RM10 million COVID-19 Test Fund (CTF) was set up in 2020 Our life insurers and takaful operators collectively came
by LIAM, PIAM and MTA in support of the government’s effort together to provide a range of support and relief measures for
to conduct more tests on Malaysians. Individuals, Group policyholders which included:
Medical and Health Insurance policyholders who were at risk
or exposed to the virus were able to claim up to RM300 for u Granting extra timeline of a few months for payment of
the COVID-19 test done at the Ministry of Health’s authorised premiums;
medical facilities and private labs in the country. Other eligibility u Restructuring of premium paying modes, from annual to a
criteria for the CTF included emergency and semi-emergency monthly basis;
surgeries, asymptomatic patients and hospital admissions. u Extending the grace period (usually 30 days) to a longer
time frame for payment of premiums;
A dedicated portal, www.myctf.my was set up to handle the u Reducing or waiving the interest charges on policy loans
submission of claims online. LIAM also engaged with private and policies under the Automatic Premium Loan (APL)
labs and public screening facilities for discounted prices option;
on COVID-19 tests. The CTF which was fully utilised and u Providing a waiver on printing cost for insurance policy’s
officially closed on 15 July 2021 had benefited about 60,000 medical card replacement.
policyholders.