Ms He Ting Ru (Sengkang): Sir, how is the Government ensuring that insurers are adequately compensating injured workers under the Work Injury Compensation Act (WICA) which applies to both local and migrant workers? Insurers obtain premiums paid for by employers and have incentive to keep costs low by limiting insurance payouts. Yet, insurers, instead of MOM, are now in charge of adjudicating work injury claims, unlike in the past.
Can the Government release the code of conduct for insurance companies for transparency, including whether there are procedures for workers to hold the insurance companies accountable and the timelines for their claims. How long have insurers taken to process claims, for example, and how many claims have been rejected?
The Senior Minister of State for Manpower (Mr Zaqy Mohamad): Ms He Ting Ru asked about the compensation under the Work Injury Compensation Act (WICA). Insurers have to adhere to claims, processing standards and guidelines, including how compensation is computed. The median time for designated insurers to process a WIC claim is about six months, and processing time varies depending on the complexity of the case. The Government reviews the WICA system regularly.
In fact, just this February, MOM announced increases to the WICA compensation limits to keep pace with wage growth and rising healthcare costs. These changes will be implemented from November 2025. We will continue reviewing WICA regularly to ensure that workers have access to expeditious and fair compensation in case of work injury.
Ministry of Manpower
4 March 2024
https://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/#/sprs3topic?reportid=budget-2369
Office of the Leader of the Opposition 