Removing the "burden" for insurance buyers

In fact, the insurance market is built on the core foundation of “trust” and “peace of mind”. Customers spend money to buy insurance not to hope for risks to happen so that they can receive insurance money, but they buy insurance as “a shield” to protect them when an incident occurs (accident, illness or loss of property…).

However, in many recent disputes, that shield has turned into a cold procedural “wall”. When an incident occurs, instead of being protected immediately, the insurance buyer is often in a weak position, forced to run around to “prove that he is a victim” in order to receive benefits.

Currently, the National Assembly and relevant agencies are making efforts to review, amend and supplement regulations related to the Law on Insurance Business. In particular, a core principle that needs to be codified more strongly than ever is not to let insurance buyers have to prove that they are victims alone.

The nature of insurance is risk sharing, people buy peace of mind, businesses sell protection commitments. However, this relationship is currently tilted towards businesses. Insurance companies hold financial resources, have professional legal departments, while buyers often lack specialized knowledge and are limited in time. When disputes arise, the current process often puts buyers in a "rock-and-egg" situation.

Discussing the above draft law, National Assembly deputies expressed the need for a mechanism to protect insurance buyers; it is necessary to focus on shifting the burden of proving transparency to the business when disputes arise. That is, when a customer complains about being mis-advised, the business must provide evidence (recordings, videos, independent consultation minutes) to prove that the agent gave correct advice. If this is not provided, the law must implicitly acknowledge that the customer is right and protect their rights.

In essence, an insurance contract should be considered a special type of contract where the understanding of the customer is a mandatory factor for the contract to be valid. If the buyer signs a document hundreds of pages long but does not understand the nature (due to the overly complex technical terminology), the responsibility lies with the drafting party.

Therefore, the law should require rule summaries to have high legal value, be concise and easy to understand, and consider this as the main basis for dispute resolution instead of thick contracts.

The goal of this law amendment is not only to manage businesses, but also to create a safe insurance market for people. For the insurance market to develop sustainably, it is impossible to allow the mindset of customers to be the ones who seek benefits and must prove themselves to be victims. Only then will the “armor” that people expect no longer be a nightmare when disputes arise, but become a true “peace of mind” for insurance buyers.

GIA KHANH

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/go-ganh-nang-cho-nguoi-mua-bao-hiem-post825105.html