Serve clients well to build profitable IP business

I refer to the article on Integrated Shield Plan (IP) insurers’ financial results (Most IP insurers posted mixed or poor results in last five years, July 18).

It was reported that Income Insurance and Prudential Singapore were the only two to have managed to post underwriting profits between

2019 and 2023 from their IP business.

Interestingly, in two independent surveys done by the Singapore Medical Association (SMA) on different IP providers, these same two insurers were among the top three with the highest scores in 2021 and 2022.

The SMA surveys asked private specialists about their experience with the various IP providers, in terms of inclusiveness and transparency of doctor selection for panels, ease and timeliness of pre-authorisation process, timeliness of payment, ease of seeing non-panel specialists, appropriateness of fees, and the likelihood of recommending the IP providers to others.

IP providers were then ranked according to the scores from the survey.

As a private specialist, I have seen the differences in the pre-approval and claims process of different IP providers.

An unsatisfactory IP provider would just pose many hurdles for the patient to make a claim after an admission, while a good IP provider would make it a breeze.

And I have seen patients switching IP providers based on their claims experience and that of their friends.

An unsatisfactory IP provider may seem to have saved money by rejecting certain claims from their clients, but they end up losing clients to their competitors.

The best way for any IP provider to gain new clients is to serve its existing clients well, as they will spread news of the good service via word of mouth.

This is like a Business 101 lesson, that providing good service and products to your customers is the best way to build a profitable business.