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Abandonment by SOCAR of non-core assets greatly increases proportion of health insurance in Azerbaijani market

Business Materials 24 February 2012 20:10 (UTC +04:00)

Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 24 / Trend A.Akhundov /

Premiums of Azerbaijani insurance companies collected on voluntary health insurance (VHI) in January 2012 amounted to 24.129 million manat with payments of 1.06 million manat, the report of the Azerbaijani Finance Ministry on insurers' activities in Jan, 2012 said on Friday.

Some 65.21 per cent of all premiums collected by the market in Jan, 2012 fell to the VHI. In Jan, 2011 it was 19.56 per cent and as of 2011 - 13.34 per cent.

Such uncharacteristic for the market high share of health insurance is caused by a sharp increase in fees for this type, which is due to start of the process of insurance of their employees by the largest company in the country - State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR).

Prior to the transfer by SOCAR of the Central Hospital of Oil Company to the balance of the Ministry of Health employees of the company to obtain free medical services applied to this hospital.

SOCAR told Trend earlier, according to present best practices, leading oil companies to improve the health of their employees attract them to health insurance.

For the insurance of their employees SOCAR chose a local company Pasha Sıgorta.

CEO of Pasha Sigorta Nofel Rzayev told Trend earlier Pasha Sıgorta completed the signing of policies for voluntary health insurance with all structures of SOCAR before March 1, 2012.

"We have been negotiating with SOCAR for the past year and a half. Insurance of some employees we have begun from Jan 1, and others - Feb 1. Policies with all employees of the company will begin to run until March 1," Mr Rzayev said.

In 2011 SOCAR transferred to the balance of a number of government agencies, as well as operators of production and distribution of electricity and water a number of facilities previously owned by the State Oil Company.

The total amount of premiums of all 29 companies in the country in January, 2012 was 37.002 million manat (a two times growth over a year), and payments amounted to 4.399 million manat (an increase by one fourth).

The report of the Ministry of Finance of Azerbaijan in January 2012 didn't not specify the outcome of activities of the only reinsurance company AzRE.

The official exchange rate is 0.7863 AZN to $1 on Feb. 24.

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