A look at China from an insurance point of view

Largest insurers in China have legal problems

China is a huge country and there are different areas that people live in. 

Elite China is a modern fast pace area with high speed trains, high rise buildings, luxury cars, gated housing developments and stores.  The rising class of China doesn’t have all the luxury like the elite, but their standards of living over the past 10 years have greatly improved.  There is an area of China where their lifestyle and poverty level is similar to when Mao ruled China and they face many difficult times.

In December 2001, China was accepted as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), helping to ensure that China continues to reform, legislate and open up many of its business sectors, including the insurance industry.  In 2009, China improved its insurance law to meet worldwide requirements.

China has a Civil Law system that is based on legislation.  The judge interprets the laws making the judges in China very active in retrieving information about the cases. With the judges being so involved in the case it oftentimes affects the outcome of the cases.

To further complicate matters, the under-educated dwell upon the time when Mao was ruling. During that time, there wasn’t a legal system that could be depended upon. So, some people do not trust the current system because of the past. Many Chinese believe in harmony and relationships, so they would rather solve their disputes with competent negotiations instead of using the legal system’s court mediations or judges.

Many Chinese companies don’t carry insurance for this reason.  It is believed that as China develops more, they will begin to use insurance to protect their companies and employees.  As things develop, employees may begin to request better medical and health care options from employers, insurance companies and private health service providers.

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