Q: I am a medical professional working for a major hospital. I would like to know whether there are any insurers in this country, who provide coverage to medical professionals on a long-term basis. Suppose there is a medical negligence and the outcome is not known during the policy period. The claim may come up say after 10 years of the incident. Usually insurers in Western countries provide such coverage. Whether this sort of claim can be covered here? A: The medical malpractice is not an attractive business from insurer's point of view. Hence getting a right policy from the right insurer is bit difficult. The medical malpractices policies issued in Saudi Arabia come under certain conditions. These policies are restricted to claims made during the policy period. There is no provision for long-term claims under the Medical Malpractice Insurance here. In view of the above conditions, it is absolutely essential for you to get a policy from a reliable and stable insurer. You should also see to it that you do not break the policy and avoid changing the insurer. Q: One of our drivers was involved in an accident some two months ago. Our vehicle was not damaged, but the other party's vehicle was damaged. Now our driver has left on exit visa. Our insurance company has asked us to provide information on the accident including the copy of driving license of the driver. When we are not claiming from the insurance company, what is the purpose of providing this information? If we do not provide the information what will be the consequence? A: From the insurance company point of view you are the insured and they have provided cover to your vehicle, hence in case of accident – whether causing damage to your vehicle or to the third party vehicle – the responsibility of the insurance company is to settle the claim provided the loss is within the terms and conditions of the policy. In your case, the vehicle has not sustained any damages. However, it has caused damage to the other vehicle, whose loss has to be compensated either by you or your insurer. The insurer will settle the claim against your policy and if you provide the correct information it will help the insurer in controlling the claims cost, which will indirectly affect you in long term. You may fill-in their claim form on behalf of your driver and also provide them with the istimara copy also if you have a copy of driving license of the driver you may provide it to your insurer. If anything is lacking try to explain to your insurer so that they will be able to waive the requirements. * Shujaath Ahmed Khan, an MBA, General Manager, Creative Associates is also a consultant and an expert in Insurance, Investments and Real Estate. He can be contacted at [email protected], website-www.creativeassociates.blogspot.com __
