SECP suggests more Insurance Tribunals

ISLAMABAD: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has strongly recommended to increase the number of Insurance Tribunals and strengthen the implementation of decisions of the Federal Insurance Ombudsman. According to a report of SECP on “Strengthening Insurance Grievance Redressal in Pakistan Current Status and Strategic Way Forward” issued on Friday, the number of Insurance Tribunals should be increased to ensure equitable geographical distribution across provinces, thereby improving access to justice. A publicly available and regularly updated list of Session Courts designated as Insurance Tribunals should be published to enhance transparency. Moreover, timely appointment of chairperson and technical member is essential to ensure continuation and effective functioning of the tribunals. The Federal Insurance Ombudsman may further strengthen the implementation of its decisions by effectively exercising the powers available to it under the applicable law along with periodic disclosure of the status of implementation of decisions on their website and issuance of periodic reports, to enhance transparency and reinforce accountability within the grievance redressal framework, the SECP recommended. Insurance companies should ensure full compliance with Circular No. 7 of 2023 by clearly and prominently communicating grievance redressal procedures, including the timelines for complaint resolution. This will enable policyholders to understand when they can expect a resolution and help ensure that companies adhere to the communicated timelines in resolving complaints. To improve operational efficiency, reduce manual intervention, and strengthen regulatory oversight, the SECP XS Portal may be enhanced into an Integrated Insurance Grievance Management System that serves both as a centralized, industry-wide insurance grievance database and a comprehensive grievance monitoring and redress management platform for the SECP. Under the proposed framework, policyholders would lodge complaints directly against insurers through the XS Portal, enabling insurers to investigate and respond within the prescribed timelines through the same platform. Where a complaint is not resolved within the pre-defined timeline or if the complainant remains dissatisfied with the insurer’s response, the complaint could be escalated electronically to the SECP for regulatory intervention, thereby creating a seamless end-to-end digital complaint resolution process while significantly reducing manual correspondence, the SECP added. Copyright Business Recorder, 2026

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