Increase in health insurance complaints in Saudi Arabia

At the end of 2017, the total number of complaints against insurers registered by the Council of Cooperative Health Insurance (CCHI) reached 53.182. This figure had been 5,283 a year earlier, which represents an increase of 907%. Of this total of 53,182 complaints, 91% are admissible, while the remaining 9% of the cases have been closed without further action.

This sharp increase is a follow-up to the supervisory authorities’ encouragement to report abuses of insurers. The establishment of a unified contract and the organization of an awareness campaign by the CCHI also contributed to this rise in complaints.

In 2017, the compensations disbursed by Saudi health insurers exceeded 15.3 billion SAR (4.08 billion USD) compared to 18.9 billion SAR (5.04 billion USD) in premiums collected during the year under study.