DESPITE the financial travails of the preneed industry, the country’s non-life insurers did well in 2011, posting higher premium growth averaging 21 percent more than its previous P85.8 billion.
And the forecast is a P100-billion premium income this year.
These were learned at a press conference called by the Philippine Life Insurers Association, or PLIA, that was co-hosted by Insurance Commissioner Emmanuel Dooc.
The briefing was held in the wake of the financial demise of Prudentialife Plans Inc. whose brand of pension, education and memorial plans is often confused by the public with that of the Philippine Prudential Life Insurance Co. Inc., or Philippine Prudential.
Dooc said Philippine Prudential is neither affiliated with nor related to Prudentialife Plans Inc., which had recently been issued a “stay order” by the Insurance Commission and prohibited from further selling its products to the public.
PLIA President Gregorio D. Mercado said life insurers generated premium sales worth P85.8 billion last year, or higher than the previous year’s premium sales of only P70.7 billion.
He attributed the increase to a healthier economy in which comparatively more Filipinos opted to get for themselves risk cover for life’s contingencies.
Mercado said the figure is subject to further audit but that it compares favorably against the year-ago premium sales growth averaging 23 percent.
“Assuming the economic issues affecting Europe and the United States do not get any worse, a double-digit growth of about 16 percent or premium income of P100 billion would be a reasonable expectation this year,” Mercado said.
According to Mercado, Filipinos are getting more risk conscious every year and have increasingly sought the protection that PLIA members offer to policy-holders as consequence of an on-going financial literacy campaign. Mercado also said the microinsurance program pursued by the government should also be an effective vehicle to help push higher the ratio of those insured among Filipinos.
He said nine PLIA members have obtained the license to sell microinsurance products to date, which are essentially retail insurance cover involving premium payments as small as one peso up to P19 a day and giving out benefits as large as P190,000 per policy.
PLIA members with microinsurance products include Asian Life and General, Banclife, CISP, CLIMBS, Cocolife, Country Bankers, Manila Bankers, Philippine Prudential and Pioneer Life.
Five other life insurers await final authority from the Insurance Commission and these include BPI-Philam, MManulife, Pelac, Philamlife and Sun Life Grepa, Mercado said.
