Tariq Abdulwase’e:”We will introduce Medial Insurance soon.” [Archives:2006/979/Business & Economy]
Interviewed By: Raidan Al-Saqqaf
[email protected]
United Insurance was established in 1981 as a subsidiary of Hayel Saeed Anam group to accommodate the needs of the group, at the onset it was the third largest insurance provider and in 1995 it become market leader in providing insurance services in Yemen. Today it has a market share of 39 percent, in spite of the growth in the market and the new competition, as today there are 13 insurance providers operating in Yemen.
YT: What is the United Insurance secret to success through your 25 years of operation?
TA: Our success secrets lie in our management and staff, who are highly competent in ensuring excellent customer service with quick handling of claims and being highly responsive to our clients' needs to guarantee that all our clients are happy and satisfied. We are the first in Yemen to introduce world-class customer focused systems and services such as our 24-hour help line which is now imitated by our competition.
YT: How would you describe Yemen's insurance industry in terms of market potential and growth prospects?
TA: From my experience as the vice chairman of the Insurance Federation in Yemen, the Yemeni insurance market and industry are not yet well established, insurance services are still in the beginning of their lifecycle and the potential for insurance services is huge in Yemen. However, we need the help and support of our government and the Ministry of Trade and Industry in promoting the industry and 'opening doors for us' through improving legislation and integrating the laws of insurance into our national laws to facilitating our operations. You would be surprised to learn that the total premium income for the whole market is 45 million dollars annually, this is an equal figure with the income of a tiny insurance company in neighbouring countries and the current legal framework isn't supportive for our growth.
YT: Yemen was hit hard by terrorism which has affected insurance premiums especially in marine insurance and freight. How did you deal with that?
TA: The attack on the Limburge affected the industry a few years ago but now that impact has become history; thanks to government interference and the 50 million dollars guarantee the government has placed in order to maintain the levels of insurance premiums they were prior to the attack. Our main problem with marine insurance and freight is the detention of commercial shipping vessels as a result of damaging the cargo, especially older vessels where it occurs regularly. Therefore businessmen and shipping agents resort to detaining vessels until the damage has been compensated and their insurance claims have been sorted.
YT: How do you deal with the cultural barriers to the concept of insurance such as life insurance?
TA: We try to educate our customers on insurance services and we have quoted some fatwas (Islamic verdicts) from a number of religious scholars that the types of insurance and life insurance services we provide are not 'Haram' (forbidden), and that we do not provide any insurance services which are labelled as 'Haram' in Islamic law What our life insurance scheme provide is a safety net for the insurer's family and children, with the money of the insurance we help them pick up their life and go on. The Yemeni society has become aware of the importance of insurance and only a minority still thinks that insurance is haram. For example, we have recently introduced a new insurance scheme for teachers and those working in the education sector, the insurance scheme includes coverage for the insurer's family if he/she dies and also covers medical expenses if the insurer suffers from an accident or a disability in accordance to the insurance scheme, we have already received over 3000 applications for this insurance from teachers in the country in spite of the short period this service has been offered. This interest shows the people have matured enough to understand their need for insurance services in Yemen.
YT: In the event of violence – like last year's price hike and the associated violence – how does that affect your industry as insurers and risk managers?
TA: We have had this experience several times previously, and there were several casualties and damages and we have to compensate for that on par with the insurance policy. Of course we have a limited protection. For example in terms of car insurance our policies do not cover riots and civil unrest, but other aspects such as damages to buildings and warehouses are covered. Despite that we compensated our clients for vehicle damages in the last riots in a suitable manner. However, we hope that no violence will take place any time soon.
YT: Would Yemen's accession to the World Trade Organization and global competition affect insurance providers in Yemen?
TA: Entry to the World Trade Organization would provide healthy competition in the local market, provided there are certain laws to protect the local companies. We don't want a giant multinational insurance corporation to open only a small branch in Yemen with four and five people, there should be regulation to dictate the size of the company, the number of staff and that it should have many branches throughout Yemen.
It is important not to have such giant companies working as mere brokers to sell policies. We, at United Insurance are not afraid of international competition because we provide the best insurance services in Yemen and have considerable expertise in working within the Yemeni environment. Keeping in mind the size of United Insurance and the strong brand it has built over 25 years of operation and mutual trust between us and our clients. However, smaller insurance providers might suffer under international competition, but their success in competing with international competition is dependent on how they react to it and their corporate strategy.
We are in touch with the Minister of Trade and Industry concerning Yemen's negotiations with the World Trade Organization and he is a very intelligent personality. We had different discussions on the subject in order to add several exemptions and regulations to regulate the entry of multinational insurance providers in order to level the playing field for local companies.
YT: Do you plan to introduce Islamic insurance packages any time soon?
TA: Islamic insurance is a relatively new concept and Tadhamun Islamic Bank is a member of our group, the Hayel Saeed Group, and it is the pioneer in the Islamic Banking Industry in Yemen. We might utilize their knowledge and expertise in this field as we develop a portfolio of Islamic and Takaful-based Insurance services. Currently we are studying the idea of Takaful Insurance in terms of the nature of services, economic feasibility and the demand of target segments for Islamic and Takaful-based insurance. You may see United Insurance to pioneer the Islamic insurance industry in Yemen as we launch our Islamic Insurance packages within a year.
YT: As an established businessman and investor, what advice would you like to convey to new investors?
TA: I advice all investors and businessmen to invest in Yemen as there are many virgin opportunities which are worth investment and have big and profitable potential, but I also advice them to know the laws and whom to deal with in the country and the business environment in order avoid surprise by the unique nature of business conduct. Yemen is a big and diverse country for investment opportunities.
YT: What are your future plans for the company?
TA: We are planning to introduce health and medical insurance within two months for the local market because if you currently want to buy a medical insurance policy for hospitalization you would have to resort to international companies and such a policy would cost you at least US $1200. We plan to introduce three categories of medical coverage tailored to the different needs of people.
YT: What will assist United Insurance in staying as a market leader?
TA: United Insurance always strives to be a good example for the industry by exhibiting social responsibility. United Insurance insists to compensate the Deyaa (compensation for accidental loss of life) for women in equivalent of the Deyaa of man in spite of law statements indicating that a Women's Deyaa is half of a man's. We believe in fairness with regards to social gender because a soul is a soul. Our mission as insurance providers is to educate the public on the importance of insurance and help our clients in the best possible manner through our insurance policies and helping them in times of crises. We even marginalise our interests in implementing our policies in favour of our clients' time and assist them in recovering any loss or damage they might suffer from because this is our ethical standing towards our clients.
——
[archive-e:979-v:14-y:2006-d:2006-08-07-p:b&e]
