A historic milestone was registered in 2025: gross written premiums (GWP) across Uganda's insurance sector exceeded UGX 2 trillion for the first time. While the headline is a marker of growth, the practical implication for claims professionals, loss assessors and insurers is more nuanced — and more demanding.

The numbers behind the milestone

At the June 2026 press briefing at the Insurance Tower, IRA Acting Chief Executive Officer Dr. Sande Protazio reported that total premiums rose by 14.72% to UGX 2.024 trillion, up from approximately UGX 1.764 trillion in 2024. Total sector assets reached UGX 3.459 trillion and capital adequacy ratios remained comfortably above regulatory requirements.

The strongest growth came from life insurance, where premiums increased from UGX 702.2 billion to UGX 977.6 billion — annual growth of 39.21%. That increase brought the life segment's market share to 48.31%, nearly equal to the non-life segment at 49.49%, a significant structural shift in a market historically dominated by general insurance.

Insurers paid out UGX 934.55 billion in claims during 2025, up from UGX 887.55 billion in 2024 — a figure approaching the UGX 1 trillion mark. According to Dr. Sande, this demonstrates "the industry's growing capacity to fulfil its promises and reinforces public confidence in insurance as a reliable financial safety net."

What this means for claims volumes

A larger premium base produces a proportionally larger claims pipeline. More policies mean more notifications, more disputes, more site inspections and more situations where the facts of the loss are not immediately obvious. For a market still working to strengthen public confidence in how claims are handled, volume alone is not the achievement — quality and consistency at scale is.

The claims settlement trend is positive in aggregate, but averages can mask important variation across classes. Motor claims — historically one of the highest-volume categories — continue to generate a disproportionate share of disputes. Property and industrial claims carry greater complexity per file. And the life and health segments, now nearly half the market by premium value, present their own claims challenges around medical documentation, beneficiary verification and the assessment of non-physical losses.

Government assets and the oil & gas frontier

Beyond the headline numbers, several policy developments have direct implications for loss assessment practice. The government has advanced discussions on insuring national assets, with priority being placed on government motor vehicles. If implemented, this would add a significant volume of state fleet motor claims to the market — a class that already demands consistent documentation and clear repair-versus-replace reasoning.

In parallel, the Authority is working with the Petroleum Authority of Uganda to develop insurance arrangements for the country's emerging oil and gas infrastructure. This is a class where specialist loss assessment capability — understanding of industrial equipment, process interruption, and large-loss methodology — will be in increasing demand.

"As the market expands, the differentiator will not be speed on its own — it will be documentation that holds up when the claim is questioned."

The assessment implications

For independent loss assessors, the expanding market creates both opportunity and obligation:

  • Volume does not justify shortcuts. Every claim still requires site verification, photographic evidence and a written account that an underwriter, reinsurer or tribunal can follow.
  • Life and health claims need different methodology from property and motor claims. Assessors working across classes need to understand the documentation standards expected in each.
  • Government fleet motor claims, if the national assets insurance proposal proceeds, will demand consistent, well-documented repair assessments at scale.
  • Oil and gas exposures will require specialist industrial assessment capability that goes beyond standard property loss methodology.
  • IRA projects 10% premium growth in 2026, supported by infrastructure investment, oil and gas development, digital innovation and expanding distribution channels.

Our view

The market's growth is genuine and welcome. But growth raises the stakes on quality. As premiums increase, so does scrutiny on whether claims are assessed and settled fairly. The differentiator for assessors will not be speed alone — it will be documentation that holds up when a claim is questioned by an underwriter, a reinsurer or a tribunal.