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Kenya’s AAR Insurance has been named “Most Innovative Insurance Mobile App Kenya 2022” & “Best New Fully Digital Insurance Company Kenya 2022” by the Global Business Magazine Awards.
On October 3, 2022, AAR Insurance Kenya Acting Principal Officer Hosea Kiprop said the awards cement their aggressive approach towards being a technology-first operation model to make products and services accessible to their customers easier and seamless through the press of a button.
The awards honour business innovators, market disruptors, and leaders from all over the world. They are organised by a Dubai-based publication Global Business Magazine LLC (the “Corporation”), to celebrate excellence, extraordinary support, and top performers in several industries.
In 2021, AAR Insurance revamped its digital suite with the launch of a mobile app as part of its strategy to become a branchless and paperless insurer. This was in addition to unveiling the “AAR Linzi” Chatbot that gives real-time responses to insurance enquiries.
Anyone can subscribe to any of the covers provided under the medical underwriter via their mobile phone, which is downloadable on the Android play store and Apple store. With the app, customers can conveniently get insurance cover for themselves and their loved ones from the comfort of their car, home or office.
It also allows customers to get a quote, make a claim or update contact information, integrate the app to customers’ WhatsApp, find medical providers and make one-click payments via the mobile money platform hence cutting down the time needed for one-on-one interactions while enabling easy access to information.
“We are focused on creating value for our customers, and in today’s world, the digital platforms make it easier for us to ensure that our customers have control over the things that matter most to them, like health,” said Kiprop.
While the award honours AAR Insurance Kenya for shaping the global market with its holistic approach to challenges facing the industry, the medical underwriter seeks to positively leverage technology to impact its relationships with intermediaries and suppliers.
CIC records profit
In a related story, CIC Insurance’s gross profit hit KSh 464 million in the first six months of 2022, compared to a pre-tax profit of KSh 337 million posted in a similar period in 2021. The performance represents a 38 per cent rise in the company’s gross profit.
CIC said the performance was driven by strong growth in the gross written premium and improved performance on the underwriting results owing to the continued implementation of transformation initiatives.
During the period, CIC’s gross written premium grew by 23 per cent to KSh 13.2 billion from KSh 10.7 billion, driven by growth in all its businesses in Kenya and the regional countries.
The business significantly improved the underwriting results by 64 per cent as the company remained focused on its core insurance business.
Meanwhile, investment income declined by 18 per cent to KSh 901 million from KSh 1.06 billion for the same period last year due to reduced valuations on the equity portfolio.
Sector performance
The development in the two insurance companies comes when the sector, like many others, continues to recover from the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) recently revealed that the industry continued to register improved performance in the first quarter of 2022 compared to previous quarters.
Industry gross written premiums in the first quarter of 2022 went up by 11 per cent to KSh 88.43 billion from KSh 79.26 billion in the first quarter of 2021.
General Insurance premiums amounted to KSh 53.92 billion. In contrast, the premium reported by the long-term insurers in the period under review hit KSh 34.51 billion, a growth of 12.1 per cent compared to a growth of 18.6 per cent the previous year.
Medical and motor insurance classes maintained a leading position in terms of contribution in general insurance business premiums at 35.9 per cent and 27.5 per cent, respectively.
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