Newspaper Insurer Press Issue no 22

Newspaper Insurer Press Issue no 22 (25 November – 16 December 2009) with an accent put on the highlights, hot topics and comments Dear readers, in the overview of the newspaper «Insurer Press» we put an accent on the highlights and hot topics news and events. We make you acquainted with the analyses and thoughts expressed by the leading insurers and keep you informed about all that happened within the period between the last two issues of the newspaper.

            Newspaper Insurer Press Issue n^o 22

(25 November – 16 December 2009) with an accent put on the highlights, hot topics and comments

 

Dear readers, in the overview of the newspaper «Insurer Press» we put an accent on the highlights and hot topics news and events. We make you acquainted with the analyses and thoughts expressed by the leading insurers and keep you informed about all that happened within the period between the last two issues of the newspaper.

 

We start our overview with the information about the one-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Prof. Dr. Veleslav Gavriiski, which was celebrated with professional forum.

National Round table on “Challenges before the education and career development of Insurance & Social Security graduates” was held on 25 November 2009, on the occasion of both the One-hundredth anniversary of the patron of Prof. Dr. Veleslav Garviiski Foundation and the Student Day, and with the active support of the Higher School of Insurance and Finance (VUZF).

The forum was held under the patronage of Dr. Claus Junker, PhD, Chairman of Board of Directors Allianz Bulgaria Holding AD, Executive Vice-President of Allianz SE, Munich, Germany.

By their participation at the round table, the attendants paid their respects and appreciation to the career and academic heritage of Prof. Dr. Veleslav Garviiski, patron of the foundation of the same name.

 

On page 9, in the column „On the occasion …” we carry the article by Prof. Dr. Neno Pavlov, Ph.D. – Deputy Chairman in charge of Social Insurance Supervision Division, FSC, entitled, „Projections of Insurance and Social Security Expert’s Structural Model”, dedicated to this anniversary. There are some excerpts:

             „The future insurance expert professional/qualification profile is immanent to the “flexible economically active person”, intrinsic to the dominant information industry model of occupancy. Its key components are defined by the symbiosis “education – globalization – sustainable development – effectiveness”, including:

              -high professionalism, economic culture and competence, matched with critical analytical thinking and political discussion; to formulate the economic priorities of the country, approving the scientific achievements, innovative market products and democratic values;

              -positive motivation for leadership, mobility, flexibility, loyalty, general proficiency, entrepreneurship and partnership, for free operation on the global insurance and social insurance markets, professional adaptability and behavior in different work teams, and definition of business development projection; blended with provision of anticipating solutions of the topical issues of the systems;

               -ability for foreign language communication and multimedia dialog - for integration of information and communication technologies in the insurance and social security business. in-depth study of the economic cultures and regulative mechanisms of both developed and emerging insurance and social security markets;

     -abilities for scientific studies, synthesis and economic assessments in the multicultural environment of information business technologies and global corporate competitiveness.”, and so on.

 

      On page 2, we announce the forthcoming introduction of a three-pillar model of health insurance.

According to the bills for amendment and supplement to the Public Health Act, in 2011 the rate of the health insurance contribution will be increased by 2 percentage points, from 8 per cent now to 10 per cent. The increase will be entirely for the account of the health insured persons, without burdening employers. There is also a planned switch to three-pillar model of health insurance as from 2011: first pillar (compulsory), second pillar (supplementary compulsory), and third pillar (supplementary voluntary). The first pillar will be managed by the National Health Insurance Fund, and the other two, by private funds.

The document abolishes the monopoly of the NHIF and launches the entry of private health insurance companies. The commitment of the state will be to set the ceiling for the prices of medical services and activities and the scope of the services provided by the mandatory health insurance as well as to regulate the private health insurance companies.

Promotion of the voluntary health insurance through additional payment and participation of doctors and economists in the pricing process/methodology, are amongst the proposals, submitted by the doctors to the financial minister.

 

On pages 4 & 5, we carry the „Theme to be continued…” – MOTOR THIRD PARTY LIABILITY (MTPL) insurance – ON FOCUS AGAIN, with subheading 19 percent of the motor vehicles travel without mandatory insurance.

Some formulate the MTPL insurance of the motorists as “the heel of Achilles” of the insurance business; as far as it is considered for a built-in loser - the collected premiums would never be able to cover the payable claims.  Others call it “the apple of discord” between the insurance companies trying to outdo each other in the number of motorist, purchased their MTPL product. A motor insurance conference under the motto “Personating Liability Makes it Viable”, was held on 10 November at Sheraton hotel, Sofia. Organizers of the event were PR agency Expert Business Group and the insurance web portal  Insurance.bg (www.insurance.bg), with participation of the National Bureau of Bulgarian Motor Insurers.

The forum was attended by representatives of the Financial Supervision Commission, the Ministry of Interior Affairs – Traffic Police, representatives and experts from all insurance companies, operating on the market, as well as representatives of the Association of Bulgarian Insurers, the National Bureau of Bulgarian Motor Insurers (NBBMI), the Guarantee Fund, claim settlement companies, consumer organizations and journalists.

There were discussed such important issues as:

• How serious is the MTPL issue in Bulgaria?
• What may be the consequences of the low MTPL coverage rate?
• The compulsory motor policies – a million euro business or a source of problems for insurance companies?
• The damage compensations adequacy and their in-time payment.
• The implementation of bonus-malus scheme – a way to improve the safety on the road culture.
• NBBMI – compensation warrantor for the indemnity of victims of accidents with registered in Bulgaria vehicles on the EU and third countries territory. Financial stability of NBBMI.
• How to accomplish and preserve the MTPL vehicle coverage rate - EU member countries expertise.
• Organization of MTPL underwriting and of payment of due compensations – good practices in three EU member countries (Czech Republic, Sweden and Romania).
• The financial stability of the national Green Card Bureaux – guarantee for the Green Card multipartite agreement System reliability.
• Activities of NBBMI in its role of compensational body as defined in the 4^th Motor Insurance Directive

 

On pages 6 & 7, we carry the column Analyses: insurance and voluntary health insurance. The conclusion is that the downward still continues, albeit at a more tempered pace.

As at 30.09.2009 the gross written premiums (including premiums of the companies that operate in active reinsurance field) amount to BGN 1,209,117 thousand compared to BGN 1,240,051 thousand as at 30.09.2008, which is translated in a drop of 2.5% on year-on-year basis.

The results posted by the companies in the non-life insurance sector for the period January-September 2009 amount to BGN 1,049,844 thousand which is 0.2% decline on yoy basis. The claims incurred in the general insurance sector amounted to BGN 549.990 thousand, generating a modest growth of 0,8% yoy.

Gross technical reserves (representing the necessary reserves for payment of future compensations) have increased by 13% annually, standing now at BGN 1,224,456 thousand.

 

On pages 12 & 18, we present the METHODOLOGY FOR OBJECTIVE MEASUREMENT AND RATING OF THE NON-BANKING SECTOR COMPANIES PERFORMANCE, developed by  Dr. Georgi Nikolov, PhD, associate professor, and Zdravka Babulska, student,  Higher School of Insurance and Finance (VUZF). The authors shared:

„Guided by our desire to help for more objective measurement of the performance of the companies nominated for annual prizes, we strongly recommend the use of the method of comparative taxonomic analysis and evaluation of multidimensional objects. According to this method, the companies could be interpreted as points in the n-dimensional Euclid’s space, while the differences between them are measured on the base of Euclid distance. The various companies are compared against an abstract (reference) company which is characteristic with minimum or maximum values of several performance measures.”

 

On page 14. we carry some materials from the conference „INSURANCE UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF THE FINANCIAL CRISIS”, held in 23 October 2009 at Metropolitan Hotel, Sofia  and hosted by PARI newspaper and the Association of Bulgarian Insurers (ABI). We publish the reports, delivered by Hristo Mihailovski, CEO, Bulgarian Credit Rating Agency „Status and perspectives for the Bulgarian general insurance market in the period of crisis”, and by Alexander Peev, Head of Product Development Department, DZI AD insurance company –“Life Insurance Market Specifics in Bulgaria”.

 

We finish our overview with the descriptive report for the Annual Awards for Contribution to the Insurance Culture of the Bulgarian Society, bestowed by the insurance company Interamerican Bulgaria EAD./pages 22 and 24/

The subject of the year 2009 contest was „Bonus-malus system in Motor Third Party Liability Insurance of the motorists”. There were three competing projects. The first prize was not awarded Second was rated the project, coordinated by Krassimir Yordanov, student, Master's program in Insurance and Social Insurance, Higher School of Insurance and Finance (VUZF).

Third prize winner was Pavlinka Kirilova – student in the same Master program of VUZF..

Kosta Cholakov, CEO, Ineramerican Bulgaria ZEAD, shared that each of the projects has very useful ideas. Georgi Nikolov, Ph.D. Vice Rector of Educational Affairs and Quality Control, said: „These awards are proof that our university is doing it's job in education.”

 

If an insurance company is not all out for profit but also takes care for the insurance consciousness of the citizens, as Interamerican Bulgaria ZEAD does, such company deserves a respect because it takes care for the nation.