A huge number of Covid-19 insurance lump-sum claims, spurred by the peak of the pandemic in 2021 and early this year, caused the closure of four insurance companies -- Asia Insurance, The One Insurance, Southeast Insurance and Thai Insurance -- as they did not have sufficient capital reserves to pay out on the claims.
At the same time, Syn Mun Kong Insurance (SMK) is planning to raise capital and find new partners to stay afloat as it navigates a court-supervised rehabilitation.
Southeast Insurance and Thai Insurance filed an application to the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) to dissolve their businesses on Jan 31, offering a full refund to Covid policy holders with 1.8 million policies in total. Around 880,000 customers have requested a refund, with more than 1 million policies still to be taken care of.
