Casting a spotlight on insurance, ta’ameen Qatar shares Mr. Salim Mansour, Country Manager at AXA Gulf Qatar’s views about the Qatari insurance market and its growing sophistication. 

Which are the few areas where insurers would need to concentrate on to penetrate this highly untapped market? 

Although the insurance sector in the GCC is cluttered, there is huge potential for growth in the region and especially in the State of Qatar. Insurers should focus on following three elements to penetrate this highly untapped market: 

1. Promote education and risk awareness: In a competitive environment, much emphasis is given on educating businesses of risk management and identifying risks, which can be a complex process. Hence, insurers should promote and educate their customers on risk awareness, rationalise the requirements and strategies to effectively mitigate risks and prevent them. Insurance as an industry has to face larger and technologically more complex risks and all customers need to understand and appreciate the impact of changes in technology and coverage. 

Mr. Salim Mansour, Country Manager at AXA Gulf Qatar 

2. Be aligned with customers’ needs: 

Being a very ‘service-intensive’ and ‘service-oriented’ industry, insurers need to reinforce their products and services to ensure that they are always aligned with their customers’ needs and expectations. They should be committed to their customers’ in delivering innovative diversified products with high quality coverage, real value for cover, technical expertise and online e-claims facilities to ensure customers’ satisfaction and trust.

3. Focus on trust and brand: 

Brand plays an important role during the decision making process of purchasing insurance products. Insurers should continue to invest and build their brand to gain trust of their customers. 

What are the latest trends in the Qatari insurance market? 

The GCC’s insurance sector is expected to witness a surge this year, notably in the construction industry as the region sets to invest more than USD 900 billion in infrastructure projects over the next decade. In the next eight years, the GCC states will be spending around USD 100 billion on road and rail projects alone. The regional insurance industry is evolving and there is tremendous potential for the regional insurance market to grow and thrive. 

In 2013, Qatar’s construction insurance sector is set to witness a flurry of activities. Qatar’s rail sector alone would see an investment ranging from USD 25 billion to USD 40 billion. The lowest estimate is expected to be around USD 25 billion. 

There will be increased demand for insurance from the infrastructure sector. Different Qatari authorities are looking to optimise the local market capacity. The local market looks very positive and we expect a lot of activities to open up this year. 

Undoubtedly, the infrastructure projects and the economic growth will be the key drivers of the acceleration of the insurance market but not the only ones. The growth of the population and the low insurance penetration of the market (when compared with the European and US averages) will also drive the expansion of the insurance market. Currently, the insurance market is essentially supported by three main lines of business – Motor, Health and to a lesser extent Property. 

There will be increased demand for insurance from the infrastructure sector 

A trend that we currently observe in the market is the growing awareness of insurance benefits. At the same time, customers’ are now looking for ‘value for money’ deals as well as technical expertise. Hence, we have to ensure to fulfill our customers’ expectations, which are becoming more with every passing day. Undoubtedly, insurance in Qatar clearly shows strong potential for growth and notably for companies such as AXA, we are glad to be in a ‘growing market.’ 

Please tell us about AXA Gulf Qatar’s inception. 

We started our operations in Qatar in 2007. Over the years, we have differentiated ourselves through several elements like our international brand, our product portfolio and our quality of service. We stood apart with our quality of service, for which, we invested money and resources to remain close to our customers’ and respond to their expectations. Today, we have loyal customers recognising us for our product offerings. 

Considering Qatar’s dynamism, how does AXA plan to support the SME sector? 

As a global company, we aim to stand out in the crowd by becoming the preferred company for our customers, intermediaries and employees alike. One of our key focus areas is the SME segment. The SME segment is already very dominant in our portfolio. Through a diversified product offering to suit various requirements of the SME sector, we are committed to make the lives of our clients convenient and stress-free at all times and more importantly, at the time of any emergency. We also advise our clients and provide risk management services to match their needs. With the 2022 FIFA World Cup on the anvil, we expect this segment to further gain prominence. Going forward, I suppose we are well positioned to capture this growth. 

Please provide an overview of the claims ratio at AXA Gulf Qatar. In that respect, how is the market different from the rest of the GCC? 

Each market is unique and offers a wide array of opportunities and challenges. The insurance industry in Qatar in general is relatively small compared to other mature markets. It is a fragmented market, with a large number of insurance players, both local and foreign vying for market share. However, there will always be scope for foreign players, for their product innovation, world-class cover and ‘know-how’. 

On the flipside, increased number of players, soft market conditions, lack of expertise in underwriting skills, portfolio management skills and high dependence on reinsurers has taken a toll on the profitability of insurance companies. 

The need of the hour is for insurance companies to innovate and accelerate the development of the sector as well as educate the population towards the need and benefits of insurance. 

Our claims ratio in Motor and Health is good and even above AXA Gulf averages. It relies on our segmentation and tariff strategy as well as on good management of expenses, which allows us to be competitive. 

Is there a particular demographic segment that you are currently aiming to reach out to? 

Our growth strategy revolves around the products that we offer, which are tailored across all sections – corporate, SMEs, individuals and families. We aim to expand strategically by offering new products in order to enable customers to access our insurance solutions across sectors. We have significantly grown in the large corporate sector. Thanks to our diversified offerings and segmented tariff, SME and individuals are picking up as well and we estimate significant growth from the SME segment too. 

The need of the hour is for insurance companies to innovate and accelerate the development of the sector as well as educate the population towards the need and benefits of insurance. 

In terms of product development, what is AXA doing to encourage insurance purchasing for lines besides motor and medical? 

Currently, we are basing our strategy on organic growth leveraging the potential of each market. Qatar is a potential growth market for us. We innovate and build new solutions across SME, health and large complex risks to match our customers’ expectations in the country. 

Our mission is to protect people when they need us and also educate the population about different risks that they could come across. We communicate a lot with our prospects about buying insurance products and elaborate on the benefits of being protected and ensure we are in line with what the population requires. We have focussed on different lines of business such as accident, liability and property (individual and commercial) insurance and will continue to do so in the near future. 

Being an insurer of repute, what do you feel are the growth drivers for insurance in the State of Qatar? 

Despite growing fast in all areas and notably in Motor and Health, we will continue to grab market share to become the preferred insurer for our customers in Qatar. Our strategy is to get closer to our customers and to be available whenever they need us – from insuring their health to motor to large complex risks to SMEs. We are constantly putting our efforts on upholding this cause. 

In my opinion, property insurance could be an area for further growth. 

Qatar boasts of having the third largest natural gas reserve in the world. Please comment on the scope of energy related risks like an oil spill or gas leakage for both onshore and offshore platforms. 

As of now, AXA Gulf Qatar does not provide insurance solutions for oil and gas related risks for strategic reasons.