As of 4 March 2024, all health insurance responsibilities are transferred from the Council of Health Insurance (“CHI”) to the Insurance Authority (“IA”), a new unified and independent regulator of the insurance sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (“KSA”). The transition of the insurance-related competencies from the Central Bank of Saudi Arabia (“SAMA”) to the IA had already taken place earlier this year. The transfer of power from the CHI completes the IA’s establishment objective, and the IA has now fully taken over the insurance-related responsibilities previously held by SAMA and CHI. The IA officially began its operations on 23 November 2023 subject to a transition period, and with a unified mandate to regulate and promote growth of the insurance sector in the Kingdom.
As the IA has now become the sole regulator, all channels of communication are consolidated, and the IA will manage all insurance complaints and queries. According to IA’s Media Center, complaints could be lodged through the complaints toll-free number (8001240551), the online portal (care.ia.govt.sa), and the ‘IA CARE’ consumer protection account on the “X” platform (formerly known as Twitter).
Further, current laws, regulations, rules and instructions which had been issued by SAMA and CHI on the insurance sector will continue to be enforced and remain unchanged, until other overriding instructions are issued. Disputes involving contracts of insurance will continue to be heard by the Committee for Resolution of Insurance Disputes and Violations (“IDC”). The rights and responsibilities between the insurers, policyholders and beneficiaries will also remain unchanged.
The establishment of the IA is an important step in strengthening the Kingdom’s existing regulatory supervision for this section, further fostering sector confidence, and building a strong and thriving insurance market. The IA reported a 14.6% growth of the Saudi insurance sector in Q3 2023 and we expect to see this growth continue throughout 2024 as the IA becomes fully operational and rolls out the much-anticipated national strategy.
How can Al Tamimi & Company help?
Al Tamimi & Company operates a specialist Insurance Practice to cater to all aspects of the Middle East’s insurance industry. They advise on both contentious and non-contentious matters and as a full-service law firm we are able to assist our clients in all industries and sectors on coverage, insurance disputes and risk management issues. For further information, please contact Anand Singh (a.singh@tamimi.com) or Di Melody (d.huang@tamimi.com).