The fine print in insurance policy nobody reads until it matters 

Recent cases in which policyholders’ claims were denied serve as a stark reminder that insurance is not a promise to pay every claim.

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SINGAPORE – Insurance is meant to be a safety net. Many assume that once premiums are paid, medical and accident bills will be taken care of – but reality can be messier.

Recent cases in which policyholders’ claims were denied serve as a stark reminder that insurance is not a promise to pay every claim. It is a promise to pay claims that fall within the policy’s terms.

This technicality can leave policyholders facing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in unexpected out-of-pocket costs.

This distinction was thrown into sharp relief when a Singapore court delivered a rebuke to NTUC Income – now Income Insurance – over its handling of claims related to Ko Wah, an elderly victim of an accident.

Ko, who was 78 when he was knocked down by a van, suffered severe brain injuries requiring multiple operations, and became bedridden and permanently mentally incapacitated. He died five years later in October 2024.

The court awarded more than $417,000 in damages to his son, who had sued on behalf of Ko’s estate for damages for pain and suffering, loss of amenities arising from injuries in the accident, loss of pre-trial earnings, medical expenses and further expenses.

In issuing the judgment, deputy registrar Kim Bum Soo chided NTUC Income for its “wholly unreasonable behaviour”, citing “unfounded objections” to some claims and “casually impersonal stonewalling”.

Kim said: “Their position was that the late Mr Ko had been comatose the entire time and could not have appreciated any pain and suffering at all.”

He also noted that despite being given “an explicit opportunity” to explain their insistence “on such an unyielding and apparently unreasonable position”, NTUC Income “simply declined to explain themselves”.

Often, insurance disputes involve how policy terms are interpreted. This happens when you and your insurance company disagree about whether your policy covers a specific claim or situation. The company says it will not pay for it, even though you believe it should.