OMAN Law and Practice Contributed by: Abdulredha Al Lawati, Zainab Al Lawati, Daniyal Khalid and Aoun Al Zadjali, ALC Lawyers & Counsel
Equivalent statutory timelines have not yet been introduced across all insurance classes. The motor reforms nevertheless indicate a regulatory preference for clearer claims-handling periods, greater settlement transparency and direct consequences for avoidable delay. Similar prescription in health or other retail lines remains an outlook rather than a current requirement. 4.7 ESG and Climate-Related Coverage ESG reporting for MSX-listed companies moved from voluntary to mandatory in 2025, and the FSA has since adopted IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 by Decision E/7/2026, with a consultation roadmap contemplating mandatory application for reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2029 and Scope 3 emissions disclosure from 2030. Since every Omani insurer is required to be a public joint stock company, insurers are simultaneously subjects of this regime and under- writers of the exposure it creates. Climate-related risk is already having a direct effect on insurance coverage in Oman. The clearest example is the 2026 amendment of the Unified Motor Insurance Policy, under which specified natural-disaster damage is now included as compulsory protection, including under compulsory motor insurance. This changes the nature of potential coverage dis- putes. For the prescribed natural-disaster cover, the question is increasingly not simply whether cyclone, flood or similar damage is insured, but whether the particular loss satisfies the requirements of the regu- latory wording, including causation, territorial scope, notification, valuation and applicable limits. Climate exposure is therefore being addressed partly through regulatory expansion and standardisation of cover, rather than solely through individually negotiated commercial wordings. 4.8 Delegated Authority and Claims Responsibility Omani insurance law does not establish a separate managing-general-agent regime equivalent to that found in some international markets. Delegation is instead addressed through insurance regulations, licensing requirements and general agency princi- ples. Insurance agents are regulated by the FSA, while
health-insurance third-party administrators are sub- ject to a specific regime under Decision E/34/2020. The central issue in a dispute is the scope of the del- egate’s authority. Depending on the arrangement, questions may arise as to whether an agent or admin- istrator could bind or amend cover, approve treatment, communicate a claims decision, make admissions or settle a claim, and whether it exceeded contractual or regulatory limits. Publicly reported Omani litigation specifically con- cerning delegated underwriting or claims author- ity remains limited. Clear terms governing authority, claims control, escalation, reporting, audit access, data responsibilities and liability allocation are there- fore particularly important. 4.9 Financial Lines Coverage Trends Financial-lines coverage is becoming more relevant as Oman’s corporate, financial-services and insolvency frameworks develop, although published data does not support ranking it as the fastest-growing liability segment. Royal Decree 20/2024 gives the FSA broad regulatory, supervisory, inspection and investigation powers. The Commercial Companies Law also recognises direc- tors’ liability to the company, shareholders and third parties in defined circumstances, while shareholders have statutory mechanisms to pursue directors. Oman should therefore not be described as having no share- holder actions, although it does not have a US-style opt-out securities class-action regime. Potential coverage issues include regulatory investi- gation costs, claims-made and notification provisions, insured-versus-insured and conduct exclusions, and allocation of defence costs. Insolvency can create additional D&O exposure under the Bankruptcy Law. Publicly reported Omani financial-lines coverage litigation nevertheless remains limited, so these are better characterised as developing exposures than established litigation trends. 4.10 Casualty Coverage Trends Casualty coverage in Oman is strongly influenced by statutory compensation frameworks, particularly
210 I NSURANCE L I T IGATI O N 2026
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