They said Prudential’s move could be violating Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) interim measure capping premium increases at 10% for most policyholders over three years.

“We hope that Prudential will issue a statement to clarify this matter. If it is true, BNM should intervene,” a MP and several senators said in a joint statement.

“Once BNM has set an interim measure, insurers and takaful operators have to comply.”

The PKR lawmakers supporting the call are Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin and senators Redzuan Othman, Amir Ghazali, Abun Sui Anyit, Bob Manolan Mohamed and Azam Hamzah.

FMT had previously reported that Prudential informed policyholders of the upcoming premium increase next month, citing a 19.6% rise in average claims compared with last year.

In a notice, Prudential said the increasing costs might warrant an annual review of medical plans and insurance charges to ensure policyholders were well protected.

Prudential CEO Lim Eng Seong said in the notice that 74 out of 1,000 policyholders had made claims under the PRUHealth plan so far this year compared with 62 a year ago.

He said each claim had seen an average increase of 3.9%, or from RM14,113 to RM14,664.

The company also suggested alternative options to policyholders to reduce their financial burden by downgrading their current benefits or changing their premium payment frequency.