Oman: Call for more insurance options for SMEs
Source: Middle East Insurance Review | Oct 2016
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Oman need better health insurance cover options in order to attract the best staff, employers say.
Ms Sherry Colbourne, Managing Partner at Startup Oman, which provides services to entrepreneurs and startups, said that insurance companies do not have any packages for start-ups, reported the Times of Oman. Insurers in Oman do not provide firms that have fewer than 10 employees health insurance cover as this volume is not considered profitable to the insurer.
That leaves small business owners facing the dilemma of not providing health cover for staff or selecting cover for individuals at a greater cost. Some have even banded together to buy insurance but the premiums can be also higher than for bigger groups.
According to several entrepreneurs, the Omani business environment needs to be changed to nurture new companies. Mr Hashar Al Mandhari, Director of the Alamri marketing company, said: “Oman needs a better business model to allow SMEs’ development, or else it will be very hard (for SMEs) to grow.”
Both Ms Colbourne and Mr Al Mandhari urge Riyada, the public authority for SME development, to intervene and establish a large number of SMEs, which can be provided with insurance cover under the same umbrella.
Mr Philip K Philip, CEO of Muscat Insurance, said that insurance companies sometimes compromise and provide insurance cover when the number of employees in an enterprise is less than 10, provided that the company places all its insurance business with the insurer.