Middle East - Bahrain: Insurers seek 3rd-party motor insurance tariff increases
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Jun 2016
The Bahrain Insurance Association (BIA) has approached the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) to consider increasing tariff rates for third-party motor insurance that to date have been unchanged for nearly 20 years.
Mr Sameer Al Wazzan, a member of the BIA board, said that the association had carried out a study of third-party auto insurance rates and appointed an actuarial consulting firm. BIA has sent the findings of the study to the CBB and is awaiting a reply from the latter, reported the business information website, Argaam.
Executives of several Bahraini insurance companies said that their companies have suffered losses in the auto insurance portfolio.
Mr Al Wazzan, who is also CEO of National Holding Company, said that he expects 2016 to be difficult for insurance companies, pointing out that insurers are facing pressure to achieve growth in their businesses even as the economic climate declines in the wake of falling oil prices.
On a brighter note, Bahrain’s new traffic law, which stresses penalties for traffic violations, could lead to reduced claims for insurance companies, he said.
Asked whether Bahraini insurance companies are implementing new technology such as telematics to monitor the behaviour of drivers and to set premiums commensurate with driving records, he said that there are a number of ideas but time and money are needed for them to be implemented.