Legal Protection for Consumers of Life Insurance Products During COVID-19 Pandemic in Indonesia
Authors: Tanoso Fausia Isti 
Published: May 2022

<p><span lang="EN-US">Despite</span><span lang="IN"> life insurance penetration rate </span><span lang="EN-US">has increased</span><span lang="IN"> from year to year and </span><span lang="EN-US">the </span><span lang="IN">total premium income of </span><span lang="EN-US">the </span><span lang="IN">life insurance industry </span><span lang="EN-US">had </span><span lang="IN">reache</span><span lang="EN-US">d</span><span lang="IN"> trillions of </span><span lang="EN-US">Indonesian </span><span lang="IN">Rupiah by the end of 2020, it is undeniable that legal protection for consumers of life insurance products</span><span lang="EN-US"> still has its shortcomings</span><span lang="IN">. This can be seen from the </span><span lang="EN-US">issuance of </span><span lang="IN">Law Number 8 of 1999 concerning Consumer Protection, </span><span lang="EN-US">in which its issuance </span><span lang="IN">was more or less influenced by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) </span><span lang="EN-US">during </span><span lang="IN">the 1998 monetary crisis. </span><span lang="EN-US">In contrast, regulation related to </span><span lang="IN">insurance ha</span><span lang="EN-US">s</span><span lang="IN"> been </span><span lang="EN-US">stipulated</span><span lang="IN"> decades </span><span lang="EN-US">before Indonesia’s independence </span><span lang="IN">through <em>Kitab Undang-</em></span><em><span lang="EN-US">U</span><span lang="IN">ndang Hukum Dagang</span></em><span lang="IN"> </span><span lang="IN">(KUHD / <em>Wetboek van Koophandel voor Indonesie</em>)</span><span lang="IN"> </span><span lang="EN-US">or </span><span lang="IN">the </span><span lang="EN-US">Indonesia </span><span lang="IN">Commercial Code</span><span lang="EN-US">.</span><span lang="IN"> A</span><span lang="IN">detailed regulation regarding life insurance was introduced through Law Number 2 of 1992 concerning Insurance Business which focuses on insurance companies and </span><span lang="EN-US">their </span><span lang="IN">supporting</span><span lang="EN-US"> institutions</span><span lang="IN">. </span><span lang="EN-US">However, there was no specific r</span><span lang="IN">egulation regarding protection </span><span lang="EN-US">for insurance consumers until 2013 when</span><span lang="IN"> Financial Services Authority </span><span lang="EN-US">(OJK) issued </span><span lang="IN">Regulation N</span><span lang="EN-US">umber</span><span lang="IN"> 1/POJK.07/2013 concerning Consumer Protection in the Financial Services Sector</span><span lang="EN-US"> which regulates consumer protection not only for insurance company, but also for other financial institutions including banks, securities company, investment advisor, pension fund, and financing company.</span><span lang="EN-US"> </span><span lang="EN-US">Later, the </span><span lang="IN">Government of Indonesia (GoI) issu</span><span lang="EN-US">ed </span><span lang="IN">Law Number 40 of 2014 concerning Insurance </span><span lang="EN-US">in </span><span lang="IN">which</span><span lang="EN-US">, according to its elucidation,</span><span lang="IN"> reflect</span><span lang="EN-US">ed </span><span lang="IN">great attention and support </span><span lang="EN-US">to protect</span><span lang="IN"> consumers of insurance services. </span><span lang="EN-US">In 2020 during the global COVID-19 pandemic, the financial services sector was </span><span lang="IN">greatly affected</span><span lang="EN-US"> and consequently, the condition also affected how insurance companies interact with their consumers due to some restrictions during the pandemic</span><span lang="IN">. In this regard, this study attempts to analyze regulations issued by GoI during COVID-19 related to consumer protection of life insurance products, </span><span lang="EN-US">within the scope</span><span lang="IN"> of Law Number 8 of 1999, </span><span lang="EN-US">OJK Regulation</span><span lang="IN"> N</span><span lang="EN-US">umber</span><span lang="IN"> 1/POJK.07/2013</span><span lang="EN-US">,</span><span lang="IN"> and Law Number 40 of 2014</span><span lang="EN-US">.</span></p>