Members and representatives of the Bulgarian Insurance Association (ABZ) participated as co-organizers in the National Scientific-Practical Conference "Current Issues of Insurance and Social Security - 2026," which took place on October 16 and 17 at the "D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics – Svishtov". The forum brought together insurers and sector representatives, regulatory institutions, brokers, managers of pension insurance companies, and academics. The conference organizers are "D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics", Bulgarian Association of Supplementary Pension Securuty Companies (BASPC), Guaranty Fund (GF), Bulgarian Association of Insurance Brokers (BAIB), and the "Prof. Dr. Velislav Gavriyski" Foundation.
ABZ Chairman Nikolay Stanchev and Prof. Dr. Rumen Erusalimov, a member of the Association's Management Board, officially opened the conference with greetings to the participants and to the students of the Academy. "The Academy is a place that unites, connecting science and business. Insurance is a business where economics, law, technology, and communications meet", said Nikolay Stanchev. Prof. Rumen Erusalimov congratulated the representatives of business, regulators, and academia, emphasizing the important role of the insurance sector in the economy.
During the conference, Prof. Rumen Eerusalimov presented data on claims filed and paid to the Guaranty Fund related to compulsory MTPL insurance. On behalf of Ivana Dimova, a member of the ABZ Management Board and Chair of the Medical Insurance Committee, an analysis of medical insurance in Bulgaria in the context of the health reform was presented at the conference.
Prof. Rumen Erusalimov presented data according to which the number of claims filed with the Guaranty Fund for compensation related to MTPL has been decreasing in recent years. This is mainly due to the higher coverage of compulsory insurance and, in some periods, to the reduced number of road traffic accidents during the COVID-19 pandemic, explained Prof. Rumen Erusalimov.
Prof. Еrusalimov's research shows that since 2020, the number of registered claims to the Guaranty Fund has decreased every year, with the exception of 2023, when there was an 8.39% increase. The following year, however, saw a decline of 18.16%, and over the six years, the total decrease is 30.30%. The decline is due to the increasing coverage of MTPL over time, which has reached nearly 100%. The Guaranty Fund covers compensation to injured third parties in traffic accidents when the at-fault driver does not have insurance. According to Associate Prof. Rumen Erusalimov's research, the decrease in registered claims to the fund is more pronounced for non-property damages, where the decline compared to the base year 2020 is nearly 60%.
Overall, the share of filed property claims is significantly higher than that of non-property claims, with a trend for this difference to deepen. Last year, property claims accounted for nearly 80%, while the remaining 20% of all claims were non-property. In 2024, nearly 84% of the filed property claims were paid, and overall for the entire period, this share is around 80%. For non-property claims, rejections are more common – in 2024, over 61% of claims were not paid.
“Claims for non-pecuniary damages are often resolved in court, which must determine compensation ‘fairly.’ The share of rejected claims is yet another testament to the good work of the Guaranty Fund in protecting the interests of the state, the insurance business, and ultimately all insured persons”, summarized Prof. Rumen Еrusalimov.
A key structural problem of the Bulgarian healthcare system is the large share of direct payments by households: The latest internationally comparable data, published in the Country Health Profile 2025, show that they account for about 36% of current health expenditures, according to Ivana Dimova’s report. This is the highest share in the EU and more than double the average level in the Union. The healthcare system is under pressure from the aging population, the high burden of chronic diseases, shortages and uneven distribution of healthcare professionals, a strong concentration of resources in hospital care, and the significant participation of households in financing medical services and medicines. All this makes the issue of insurance part of the broader question of health reform.
Data from the Financial Supervision Commission show a gradual increase in the importance of insurance related to medical expenses: its share in gross premium income from general insurance increased from 3% in 2023 to 4% in 2024. Despite the growth, voluntary health coverage remains relatively small compared to compulsory insurance and direct payments, Ivana Dimova notes in her report. In her analysis, Ivana Dimova points out that within such a framework, voluntary health insurance can perform an important complementary function: to provide faster navigation, additional coverage, preventive services, and innovations in service delivery.
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