Sale of Covid-19 insurance policies hits the roof after new surge of infections

[webfact]

Sale of Covid-19 insurance policies hits the roof after new surge of infections

By The Nation

 

 

The sale of Covid-19 insurance policies has skyrocketed in Thailand since the emergence of new infections.

 

Insurance company TQM Corporation’s chief executive officer Napassanun Punnipa said over 1,000 customers had bought Covid-19 insurance online after the number of cases spiked on Saturday night.

 

She added that 70 to 80 per cent of customers who had bought Covid-19 insurance after domestic cases were found in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai decided to extend their policies well before they expire in February next year.

 

“Based on this, we are confident the company’s performance will rise next year,” she said.

 

Meanwhile, Muang Thai Insurance senior executive vice president Puntrika Baingern said Thailand's new round of Covid-19 infections has proved to be beneficial for the insurance business.

 

She said the company had offered Covid-19 insurance policies three times this year, and the latest policy, which is being sold until December 26, promises insurers Bt100,000 if they test positive.

 

"Many customers have contacted the company’s call centre and sent requests online asking for details,” she said, adding that the company will carefully consider its business plans in the wake of the new outbreak.

 

The Office of Insurance Commission said some 9 million Covid-19 insurance policies have been bought and up to Bt4 billion collected in premiums.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30399979

 

 

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[Flying Saucage]

An impressing business model.

 

Firstly create Covid hysteria and paranoia in a country which has proven to be quite safe towards the virus, mainly due to its climatic and social conditions. Make the people believe that they almost surely will die in case of an infection.Let 'em lose any common sense, and make them panicking about the virus. Then create some overpriced insurance policies. And then eventually start testing, and suddenly find some hundreds positive cases. 

 

At least the insurance companies and their superrich owners will make quite a big business now.

[daveAustin]

Yes, naff all round. Some really scummy people are winning well out this whole rubbish state of affairs that only really affects the aged/infirm and obese in appreciable numbers.

[ding]

Lets hope that with the actual healthy competition in Thailand that gouging will not occur there - as in another country I'll not mention...

:whistles:

[Thailand]

“Based on this, we are confident the company’s performance will rise next year,”

 

That's alright then.

[bobbin]

I have one of these policies..

 

860 Baht/year for 100,000 Baht cash for hospital expenses and up to 1,000,000 Baht for severe complications/death.

 

Considering that testing positive results in hospitalization ( no self-isolation at home allowed) I think it's a reasonable cost.

 

Hardly price-gouging.. Though it's proven to be a nice little earner for the companies that offer the insurance.

[thailand49]

40 minutes ago, bobbin said:

I have one of these policies..

 

860 Baht/year for 100,000 Baht cash for hospital expenses and up to 1,000,000 Baht for severe complications/death.

 

Considering that testing positive results in hospitalization ( no self-isolation at home allowed) I think it's a reasonable cost.

 

Hardly price-gouging.. Though it's proven to be a nice little earner for the companies that offer the insurance.

Care to name the company!  When the list came out 9 months ago I went or called each company all told me no longer available?

[apetley]

Muang Thai Insurance T&C's say Thais only.

[apetley]

7 minutes ago, apetley said:

Muang Thai Insurance T&C's say Thais only.

.....as do the first 3 companies listed by TQM Broker.

Seems a pointless thread as far as farang are concerned if that's the case.

Anybody know an Insurance Company insuring expats regards Covid as of now?

[Tagged]

15 minutes ago, apetley said:

.....as do the first 3 companies listed by TQM Broker.

Seems a pointless thread as far as farang are concerned if that's the case.

Anybody know an Insurance Company insuring expats regards Covid as of now?

Yeap, 80 000,- bath a year for luma and below 55 years. 

[apetley]

1 minute ago, Tagged said:

Yeap, 80 000,- bath a year for luma and below 55 years. 

Thanks....shame as I'm 61.

[topt]

32 minutes ago, apetley said:

Anybody know an Insurance Company insuring expats regards Covid as of now?

I would have thought it should be covered under an existing in-patient health insurance policy - certainly any International ones as mine is.

If people don't have that I would check with a broker whether there are any stand alone policies available for foreigners. They should be able to tell you straight away. AA Insure or similar. http://www.aainsure.net/

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

She said the company had offered Covid-19 insurance policies three times this year, and the latest policy, which is being sold until December 26, promises insurers Bt100,000 if they test positive.

And how much of the treatment does that actually cover, 10%?

you pay the balance?

[guru]

Can’t tell you whether they still cater to foreigners but I got covid insurance through dhipaya back in March. 850 baht for 1 year. 1 million baht death or serious complications / 100,000 treatment. 

Call Centre: 1736

Got full covid treatment coverage through work insurance with AXA Thailand as well so would think they would do this for individuals too.
AXA tel:021188111

 

 

[DPKANKAN]

1 hour ago, apetley said:

Muang Thai Insurance T&C's say Thais only.

I have health and accident cover from Muang Thai anyway and was told I am covered for covid under the existing policy????????????????????????????????

[Bangkok Barry]

8 hours ago, Flying Saucage said:

An impressing business model.

 

Firstly create Covid hysteria and paranoia in a country which has proven to be quite safe towards the virus, mainly due to its climatic and social conditions. Make the people believe that they almost surely will die in case of an infection.Let 'em lose any common sense, and make them panicking about the virus. Then create some overpriced insurance policies. And then eventually start testing, and suddenly find some hundreds positive cases. 

 

At least the insurance companies and their superrich owners will make quite a big business now.

 

1 - climate does not have any effect on the virus.

2 - have you checked the price of the insurance policies, or just spouting that they are overpriced with nothing to support what you say?

[Flying Saucage]

1 hour ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

1 - climate does not have any effect on the virus.

2 - have you checked the price of the insurance policies, or just spouting that they are overpriced with nothing to support what you say?

 

The climate has a huge effect on the virus, and this is very well known!!!!

 

Thailand always has been as safe as Europe during summer time, as Europe during July, August. At that time, the virus was well under control there. Now in Europe the numbers are exploding. But Thailand doesn't have a European winter. 

 

I wrote many times in this forum already about this, but some have difficulties to understand the mechanisms which are quite obvious:

 

It's hardly ONE single virus which makes one sick. The immune system easily can handle this. But, if an infected person is around, there are bigger numbers of contaminated droplets around, and hence there is a certain concentration of viruses in the air, a certain number of viruses per volume. Therefore, the outcome for being exposed to these aerosols depends on the concentration of these aerosols, the duration of being exposed at this place, and the immune system. Also the concentration extremely depends on what the infected person is doing. Keeping the mouth shut and wearing a mask helps a lot. Talking or even far more shouting (Lumpini stadium!), singing (the huge numbers of cases caused in churches in the Western world) or heavily breathing during sport activities extremely increases the exhaled aerosols and hence the virus load in the air. 

 

Now, if an average (!) person inhales a small number of viruses, let's say 100 (just a guess), his immune system still will be able to handle the infection well. This might lead to an asymptomatic infection. If the number of inhaled viruses is bigger, let's say 1000 (again, just a guess, and example), a mild infection might occur. For bigger numbers of let's say 2000 to 10000 viruses, a more severe case might be the result. All this shows that it is helpful to be outdoors, and that it is important to reduce the aerosols indoors by frequently exchanging the air (open the windows). Also an air conditioning might be helpful, as aerosols condensate in its condenser. 

 

A nice example is public transport: In the BTS, the people shut their mouths, wear a mask and play their mobile instead of talking to others. And people are only in the train for a few minutes. And indeed, there are very few cases known in which infections happened in public transport.

 

Now, coming to the climate, it is well known that such viruses depend on being in such aerosols or droplets, and the lifetime of such droplets in the air heavily depends on both the ambient temperature and the humidity. The bad situation in Europe right now is the extremely long lifetime of the droplets and aerosols in the cold air outdoors, AND the fact that indoors the concentration of the virus in the air can be high as people do not open the windows every hour or so. This is what happens in Europe now, and this is why the numbers of infections grow for orders of magnitudes in the recent time, compared to the situation during summer when it was warm outdoors, windows were kept open and people spend a lot of their time outdoors. It's the climate and nothing else which makes the virus a problem on the northern hemisphere just now!

 

Now to the argument that also India, Brazil and the Philippines have high numbers. Well, all these countries have slums with a dense population, in Mumbai, Kalkutta, Rio or Manila. Hundreds of thousands live together on a small area. If then a lockdown is implemented, as it was the case in the Philippines and India, and if people nevertheless secretly move from house to house, high virus concentrations indoors can be the result, and the people are simply too close together for a too long time to outweigh the effect of the temperature on the droplets and aerosols.

 

Myanmars climate is similar to Thailand, why are the numbers higher there? Well, Myanmar also has a very bad health system, Thailand has a quite good one. And less use of AC. And the communication policy of the government might be different. I always say that the low numbers in Thailand are caused by luck (climate, social behaviour), lies (who trusts anything this government is saying?) and a low number of tests (2 days ago after the outbreak, Thailand proudly announced to test 10,000 people, whereas European countries of a similar size do currently around 1 to 2 million tests per week).

 

For the low number of cases and a similar climate, but also social behaviour, I think Thailand can be quite well compared to Vietnam.

 

This all explains quite well what happens in Thailand and why there is still not so much to worry about.