Insurance landscape in the Philippines
The insurance industry is varied and comprehensive, with plans ranging from life to non-life, pre-need, and micro and macro insurances. Between insurance types, life insurance has a higher insurance density in the Philippines, reflecting an increasing premium income generated. The number of newly insured Filipinos surged in 2020, reaching a peak of about 27 million in 2022. In terms of premium income and total assets, leading life insurance companies Sun Life of Canada (Philippines), followed by Pru Life Insurance Corporation and AIA Philippines Life and General Insurance.Meanwhile, the non-life insurance industry has shown gradual growth in its gross premiums written, aside from a slight decline in 2020. Gross premiums written were highest for fire insurance, which reached about 37 billion Philippine pesos in 2021, followed by motor car insurance. In 2023, Pioneer Insurance & Surety Corp. and Malayan Insurance Company, Inc. were the leading non-life insurance companies by gross premiums written.
Since getting insurance coverage could mean additional expenses, Filipinos belonging to low-income households could turn to cheaper insurance products known as microinsurance. Microinsurance policies in the Philippines were mostly written by the Mutual Benefits Association (MBA). Paying sick benefits and furnishing financial support to MBA members while out of employment were two of the associations’ provisions. Preliminary figures suggest that the Mutual Benefits Associations (MBAs) issued premiums worth approximately 14.5 billion Philippine pesos for covering microinsurance needs.
