A total of Tk 37.54 crore has been disbursed in insurance claims to 8,417 policyholders of seven distressed life insurance companies in two phases by the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA).
The authority mobilized funds from diverse sources, including the insurers’ assets and government securities, to settle long-pending claims.
Initially, Tk 14.51 crore was distributed to 2,549 policyholders of BAIRA Life Insurance, Fareast Islami Life Insurance, Golden Life Insurance, Homeland Life Insurance, Padma Islami Life Insurance, Progressive Life Insurance, and Sunflower Life Insurance in the first phase.
In the subsequent phase, Tk 23.03 crore was allocated to 5,868 policyholders of Padma Islami Life Insurance, Homeland Life Insurance, Fareast Islami Life Insurance, Sunflower Life Insurance, and Sunlife Insurance.
Noor Mohammed Bhuiyan, the CEO of BAIRA Life Insurance, mentioned that the company had not liquidated any assets, treasury bills, or bonds yet but was in the process of doing so. The company’s interest income was aiding in arranging funds for claim settlements.
Approximately Tk 100 crore in claims are still outstanding, impacting around 30,000 customers, as estimated by Bhuiyan. The timeline for settling these claims remains uncertain, but the company will continue disbursing funds to policyholders as funds become available.
Bhuiyan later confirmed that the company’s assets and current holdings could cover around 80 percent of the outstanding claims.
A senior official from Padma Islami Life Insurance stated that the company was currently utilizing interest income from its capital to cover staff salaries and operational costs. The company owes about Tk 80 crore to policyholders and is focused on settling these claims by recovering and selling assets.
The acquisition of 8.5 katha of the company’s land in Malibagh by the Metro Rail project is anticipated to generate over Tk 40 crore. Additionally, the company possesses 40 katha of land in Bashundhara.
Efforts to reach Md Abdur Rahim Bhuiyan, CEO of Fareast Islami Life Insurance, were unsuccessful.
Mir Nadia Nivin, IDRA’s chairman, emphasized the importance of promptly settling legitimate claims as a top priority for the authority. She highlighted the significance of faster and transparent claim settlements in rebuilding public trust in the insurance sector and stated that IDRA would take necessary actions to safeguard policyholders’ interests.
Nivin affirmed that the claims settlement initiative would persist beyond the initial phases. The remaining valid unpaid claims will be meticulously reviewed and verified, with payments being made gradually after completing requisite procedures to ensure policyholders’ rights.
Barrister Khan Mohammad Shameem Aziz, a Supreme Court advocate, stressed the positivity of returning any amount to policyholders currently and urged for efforts to recover and distribute funds from the companies’ available assets. He recommended exploring extraordinary legal measures within the existing regulatory framework to safeguard policyholders’ interests.
Shameem urged IDRA to assess existing laws and implement stricter enforcement measures to guarantee the payment of policyholders’ claims.
