NU Online News Service, May 13, 3:50 p.m. EDT–Insurance executives and legislators from Central Asia, who participated in a risk management seminar yesterday expressed concerns about obtaining buyers' trust, managing risk to lower costs and combating fraud.
Eighteen participants took part in a one-day session put on by the Risk and Insurance Management Society in New York. It was part of a Special American Business Internship Training program that lasts three weeks.
RIMS said the group attending its session involved mid- to senior-level executives from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
The delegates, including representatives of legislative bodies and private insurance company executives, told National Underwriter their insurance and risk management programs are in many ways similar to those in the United States. A big difference, however, is a lack of infrastructure, which makes them vulnerable to fraud.
Galym Amerkhodjayev, deputy board chairman of Oil Insurance Company, JSC in Kazakhstan, said one thing the U.S. has is "huge databases."
In Kazakhstan, Mr. Amerkhodjayev said, "We do not have universal databases. Each company collects its own data."
The lack of a universal database, he said, is "an impediment for risk managers, underwriter and actuaries. We have undertaken steps to establish databases."
He said his nation's main goals are to standardize data and cut down on fraud.
"We can see that fraud is going up and becoming more sophisticated," he said. "We need sophisticated databases to fight it."
Unlike the U.S. where nearly every state has a fraud bureau, Mr. Amerkhodjayev said there are no such agencies in his country, which leaves the business of fighting fraud to the insurance companies.
Another big challenge to the insurance industry in countries of the former Soviet Union, Mr. Amerkhodjayev said, is the lack of trust from the public. This was caused by "inflation that led to drastic changes in the financial situation; companies lost credibility," he said.
Seyit Kanimetov, head of insurance and reinsurance with Kygyzlnstrakh Insurance Company LLC in Kyrgyzstan, said his company's reinsurer plays a big role in helping with risk management issues. The reinsurers, he said, help to establish and set standards with corporate clients.
He added that the general mistrust of the public toward insurers is changing as more people desire insurance coverage.
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