Insurance companies in uproar over Covid scam by clients

In a bizarre twist of fate, insurance companies are crying wolf after being scammed out of 500 million baht from a Covid-19 insurance scheme.

Evidence has emerged that thousands of people who bought the “Found, Paid, Done” Covid-19 insurance scheme submitted fake documents for compensation totalling an estimated 500 million baht.

The president of the Thai General Insurance Association, Anon Vangvasu, says many members of the association have complained about false claims made by their clients.

In an unusual practice, a number of insurance companies quickly paid out to customers who were claiming for Covid-related health reasons. But when the outbreak eased, insurance companies double-checked records with hospitals where their clients had treatment and discovered that many of the supposed hospital-issued documents were bogus.

Anyone found guilty of using false documents faces 3 years in jail and/or a fine of 300,000 baht.

The high number of COVID-19 claims on the “Found, Paid, Done” insurance policy has pushed a number of insurance companies close to the edge. Many of them are experiencing significant financial losses, and some of them have requested bankruptcy protection.

SOURCE: Thai PBS World