The local branch of Cardif Assurance Vie is seeking to further boost its gross written premium this year after achieving a record high last year, as stable economies at home and abroad continue to support sales, top-ranking officials said yesterday.
Gross written premiums totaled NT$68 billion (US$2.32 billion) last year, an improvement of 37 percent from a year earlier and the highest since the French insurer entered Taiwan in 1998, country manager See See Ooi told reporters.
Ooi attributed the robust showing to strong demand for investment-oriented policies, which generated 97 percent of sales last year, giving the company the leading position in the local market for unit-linked revenue, she said.
Taiwanese like to buy insurance policies, especially investment-oriented ones, with the per capita premium standing at NT$139,310 and insurance density at 19.19 percent last year, Financial Supervisory Commission data showed, meaning that people spent 19.19 percent of their salaries on insurance policies intended mostly as saving tools, instead of protection against retirement or emergencies.
Sales should climb higher this year as the macro-environment is to lend further support despite a high base and uncertainty linked to monetary tightening and trade barriers, Ooi said.
The company finished strong in the first quarter with total premiums soaring 63 percent from a year earlier and outpacing its target by 37 percent, said Vanessa Chang (張燕妮), an assistant vice president in charge of brand and communications at Cardif Taiwan.
Insurance policies linked to target-date funds and other investment instruments were popular, she said.
Apart from unit-linked policies, Cardif Taiwan is to strengthen its mortgage insurance business, Ooi said.
About 95 percent of Taiwanese buy houses by taking out loans with banks, but only 15 percent have mortgage insurance, exposing them to great risk if they are unable to pay their mortgage, Ooi said.
The low penetration rate suggests ample room for business growth and Cardif Taiwan plans to tap into the market, she said, adding that between 70 percent and 80 percent of people in Europe and the US have mortgage insurance.
Cardif Taiwan offers insurance products entirely through bancassurance — the selling of insurance products and services by banking institutions. It does not hire sales agents and quit telemarketing four years ago.
Starting late last year, the company launched unemployment insurance policies that would pay policyholders NT$10,000 per month for up to six months for an annual premium of NT$1,856, Cardif Taiwan chief marketing officer Claire Wang (王瑜華) said.
“The policy is intended to help people avoid financial stress when they are out of job, a risk that is underestimated as technology is evolving rapidly,” Wang said.
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