Parliament passes Bill introducing penalties for insurance fraud

The Kenya National Assembly on Thursday has passed the Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2018 introducing penalties for insurance fraud.

The Bill if assented into law, will ensure that insurance companies comply with the standards of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) on addressing insurance fraud.

The Bill was submitted to the National Assembly by Treasury’s Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich in proposals made in the 2017/18 fiscal year budget.

“The bill seeks to amend the Act by introducing a legal provision creating offences on insurance fraud, including penalties intended to address the problem of insurance fraud that continues to be a major challenge to the stability of the insurance industry in the country,” part of the bill reads.

The Bill sought to amend the Insurance Act to provide solutions for the “Adverse selection and high costs of loss assessment related to traditional indemnity-based agriculture insurance by providing for index-based insurance as an alternative with the intention to reduce moral hazard, adverse selection, underwriting and claim assessment costs while speeding up claim settlements.”