Complaint unit for insurance claims

Head of ACAL urges parliament to pass on insurance law to modernize sector

The Insurance Commission Control (ICC) announced that it has established a specialized unit tasked with receiving and dealing with complaints from insured residents.

The main objective of the unit is to try to settle claims cordially between insurance firms and the insured. The unit, however, does not have the legal power to compel the insurer to reimburse the insured.

In case mediation fails the claim will be settled through the judicial system, with the Insurance Board of Referees - an independent judicial council - dealing with car accidents and hospitalization claims of less than $50,000.

Assaad Mirza, Chairman of the Insurance Companies Association (ACAL), said that the association is anticipating the adoption of a new insurance law which was studied by the parliamentary committees and has been stuck in parliament for over three years. “We approved 95 percent of the law, and our reservations were limited to certain details which could be resolved,” he said in a press statement.

Mirza said that the Minister of Economy and Trade, Nicolas Nahas, has been supportive to the demands of the insurance sector. Nahas has recently voiced support for a modern insurance law. He said that the current law does not easily allow the application of penalties on insurance firms which violate the regulations.