Oman: Health insurance sector continues to track strong growth

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MUSCAT: Health insurance accounted for 38.2 per cent of the gross direct underwritten premiums totaling RO 565.512 million recorded by the insurance industry in the Sultanate of Oman in 2023. Dwarfing the 19.7 per cent share of motor vehicle, once the dominant segment of the insurance sector, the health insurance sector is poised to consolidate its growth as the Unified Health Insurance Scheme is progressively rolled out to cover all categories of the Omani private sector workforce.

According to newly published data of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), the regulator of the insurance sector in Oman, gross direct premiums of the insurance sector increased by 4.5 per cent to RO 565.512 million at the end of 2023 compared to RO 541.326 million at the end of the previous year.

“The audited financial data for the year 2023 indicates a variation in performance compared to previous years, with the contribution ratio of the insurance sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rising to 1.35 per cent, compared to 1.23 per cent in 2022,” said FSA Executive President Shaikh Abdullah bin Salem al Salmi in an opening message in the latest edition of the Authority’s Insurance Market Index.

Gross direct premiums for health insurance increased by 12.9 per cent to RO 216.213 million in 2023, up from RO 191.517 million in 2022. For the general insurance segment, gross direct premiums dipped 0.2 per cent to RO 281.882 in 2023 compared to RO 282.538 million in 2022. It inched up 0.2 per cent To RO 67.418 million for Life & Saving insurance, compared to RO 67.271 million in 2022.

Significantly, total claims paid out in 2023 increased by 1.8 per cent to RO 322.806 million in 2023, up from RO 317.035 million in 2022. According to the FSA, the audited financial statements of insurance companies indicate a decrease in the total claims paid for the general insurance business by 9.8 per cent to RO 123.880 million in 2023. Claims paid for the Life & Saving insurance business have decreased by 17.0 per cent in 2023, while the health insurance segment saw a 17 per cent jump in claims to RO 171.434 million. Gross claims paid by the national insurance companies have increased by 5.9% in 2023.

“It is noteworthy that the health insurance represents the highest percentage of claims paid by the national insurers in 2023 at 55 per cent and the general insurance was the highest claims paid by foreign insurers at 46 per cent,” the Authority noted in its report.

The overall profitability of insurance companies was slightly lower in 2023, according to the Authority. Total net profits of the insurance companies were RO 25.865 million in 2023 compared to RO 29.499 million in 2022 decreasing by 12.3 per cent Profits of the national insurance companies were RO 16.501 million in 2023 compared to RO 18.359 million in 2022 which represents a decrease of 10.1 per cent. Net profits of the foreign insurance companies were RO 9.364 million in 2023 compared to profits at RO 11.141 million in 2022, which indicates a decrease by 15.9 per cent.