ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in a meeting with British counterpart Elizabeth Truss has conveyed Islamabad’s disappointment over the English Cricket Board’s decision to cancel a Pakistan tour scheduled for the first half of October.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) earlier this month canceled both its men’s and women’s cricket tours to Pakistan. The decision came just days after New Zealand scrapped its tour to Pakistan moments before the start of the first one-day international in Rawalpindi, citing a specific threat to its cricket team. New Zealand did not share the details of the threat with Pakistan.
“This had not only caused financial loss to Pakistan Cricket Board but also deeply disappointed millions of cricket fans,” Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, quoting Qureshi as telling Truss.
Shunned by all after the deadly 2009 attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore, Pakistan has been trying to woo back top international teams.
England is scheduled to tour Pakistan for test and limited-overs matches late in 2022 and the British High Commissioner in Islamabad has said he “will redouble my efforts in advance of England’s Autumn 2022 tour.”
Pakistan faced financial loss, disappointment after England canceled cricket tour, FM tells UK counterpart
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Pakistan faced financial loss, disappointment after England canceled cricket tour, FM tells UK counterpart
- England and Wales Cricket Board earlier this month canceled both men’s and women’s cricket tours to Pakistan
- Decision came just days after New Zealand scrapped tour to Pakistan before start of first one-day international
Pakistan launches digital tools to trace life insurance claims, tighten motor insurance enforcement
- SECP rolls out SMS-based Life Insurance Policy Finder, orders insurers to join Motor Insurance Repository
- The regulator says centralized data will help authorities verify coverage, reduce long-unclaimed benefits
KARACHI: Pakistan’s securities regulator on Monday announced two digital initiatives aimed at overhauling how insurance data is stored and accessed, in a push to strengthen enforcement, improve transparency and make it easier for citizens to trace insurance coverage.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) announced in two separate statements it had introduced a nationwide Life Insurance Policy Finder to help families identify policies held by deceased relatives. It also directed all non-life insurers to join a centralized Motor Insurance Repository (MIR).
Both systems, developed with the Central Depository Company (CDC), seek to address longstanding gaps in a sector where weak records, low compliance and limited data-sharing have left motorists, policyholders and beneficiaries without reliable recourse.
“The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), in collaboration with the Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited (CDC) and the Insurance Association of Pakistan (IAP), has introduced the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service,” it said in one of the statements. “This initiative is designed to facilitate the general public in locating life insurance policies of deceased loved ones.”
“The service addresses a long-standing challenge faced by families who remain unaware of life insurance policies held by their deceased relatives,” it added. “This lack of awareness often results in legitimate claims and benefits remaining unclaimed for years.”
The SECP said the initiative aims to strengthen consumer protection, promote transparency and provide structured and secure access to insurance benefits for rightful heirs and beneficiaries.
Under the new policy-finder service, which goes live on Dec. 15, individuals can send the CNIC number of the deceased via SMS to 99833.
If a policy exists, the relevant insurer will contact the beneficiary to verify details and guide them through the claims process. Life insurers and family takaful operators have also been instructed to participate fully and respond to queries within set turnaround times.
Separately, on the motor insurance side, all non-life insurers underwriting vehicle policies are required to sign a service-level agreement with the CDC within 60 days and begin uploading complete and validated policy data to the MIR.
The repository will allow provincial and federal authorities to verify third-party insurance coverage, a requirement that exists on paper but remains loosely enforced nationwide.
The SECP said the measures form part of its broader effort to promote digital transformation, improve compliance and safeguard consumer interest.
“A centralized and validated data repository will allow authorities to verify insurance coverage efficiently, addressing significant gaps in compliance,” it added.
