LIAM seeks govt support on insurance penetration

KUALA LUMPUR: The Life Insurance Association of Malaysia (LIAM) has expressed hope that the new government would continue to support insurers and takaful operators to reach out to more Malaysians in line with the aspiration to insure 75 per cent of the population by 2020.

President Anusha Thavarajah said despite the recent change in the Malaysian government, she believes the initiative would continue as it would benefit the community as a whole.

Currently, she said, the penetration rate remains at around 56 per cent with only about 32 per cent of Malaysians owning more than one policy.

“We expect a high single-digit growth for the industry this year, about eight to nine per cent, about the same momentum that we saw last year,” she said on the sidelines of the association’s inaugural Raya Open House here recently.

She said LIAM, together with Bank Negara Malaysia, launched 10 affordable protection plans under Perlindungan Tenang in November last year, and hopes for more collaborative efforts in order to create public awareness of the need for insurance or takaful for family protection.

Anusha also urged more insurers and takaful operators to participate in the ‘Perlindungan Tenang – Mampu & Mudah’, a national initiative specially targeted at the bottom 40 per cent of households (B40).