Malaysia’s motor insurance business is still losing money despite being the biggest slice of the country’s general insurance market.
Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia said motor insurance recorded an underwriting loss of RM289.3 million in 2025, with a combined ratio of 103%.
In plain English, insurers paid out more in claims and expenses than they collected from motor premiums. The result was slightly better than in 2024, improving by 0.7 percentage point, but the segment stayed in the red.
Motor insurance brought in RM10.9 billion in gross written premiums last year, equal to 45.2% of the general insurance industry’s total portfolio. Growth also slowed to 5.0% year-on-year, compared with 6.7% in 2024.
Private cars were a key weak spot. PIAM said private-car claim frequency remained above 7% in 2025. Claim severity also rose to RM8,831, partly due to spare-parts inflation.
The association named the Proton Saga and X50 in relation to higher repair severity, while the X50 and X70 were cited among high-volume models with higher claim frequency.
For motorists, this helps explain why insurers keep talking about repair bills, risk pricing and claims control. Cars are also getting more complex. PIAM said electrification, digitalisation and autonomous features are changing motor risk profiles, with the industry assessing these shifts through the 2025 Malaysian Claims Analytics Study.
Towing also came up. PIAM said insurers introduced temporary support measures for essential towing operators, including priority dispatch for hazardous cases, appointments for non-urgent towing, wider use of panel workshops and flexible reimbursement for policyholders who arranged towing themselves.
Comprehensive motor policyholders are advised to call their insurer’s 24-hour assistance helpline first and check reimbursement eligibility before using independent towing.
