MH370 insurance claims accepted: PIAM

The General Insurance Association of Malaysia (PIAM) members have agreed that a death certificate will not be a required when submitting claims related to passengers and crew members onboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, due to the nature of the incident. “All 15 insurers that have directly insured the passengers and crew members of MH370 have agreed to simplify the documentation and claims processes and claims will be paid out speedily,” said PIAM chairman Chua Seck Guan in a statement at the end of May. “The industry is committed to provide all necessary assistance to all parties involved in the MH370 incident. We would like to stress that our member companies are well-positioned to provide services and quickly pay out claims to help the affected parties ride through these difficult times,” Chua added. Flight MH370, with 239 people aboard, left Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 12.41 a.m. on 8 March and vanished from radar screens about an hour later while over the South China Sea. It was to have arrived in Beijing at 6.30 a.m. on the same day. The statement from PIAM noted that the Malaysian general insurance industry will also give special priority to speed up the claims payouts and enable insured’s family members to quickly receive their settlements. A recent survey conducted by PIAM showed that some insurers had settled such claims within two working days upon receipt of the required claims documents. According to Chua, the Association has also received some calls from affected families and PIAM has tried its best to advise and assist in the best possible way to make the trying times of these families easier.