Hong Kong IA reveals insurance complaints dropped by 9% in 2021

The IA also said its handling of complaints also improved.

Insurance related complaints dropped by 9% in 2021 compared to 2020, according to the Hong Kong Insurance Authority.

The regulator also saw its completion rate for handling complaints in 2021 improved by 22.7% compared to the previous year. The IA said its efficiency may be partly due to improvements in their complaints handling processes.

“These improvements aim to better focus the process on examining the merits of a complaint in a fair, objective and timely manner, with the twin aims of ensuring policyholders are protected and reinforcing high standards of conduct across the insurance market,” the IA said.

Statistics by IA revealed that the most complaints they have received throughout 2021 was in the category of conduct at 28%, which refers to complaints arising from the process in which insurance is sold, the handling of client’s premiums or monies, cross-border selling, unlicensed selling, allegations of fraud, allegations of forgery of insurance related documents, commission rebates and “twisting” (i.e. insurance agents inducing their clients to replace their existing policies with those issued by another insurer by misrepresentation, fraudulent or unethical means). 

This is followed by complaints on Business or Operations (21%), claims (18%), representation of information (16%), services (15%), and insurance intermediary (1%).

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