The Answer in 60 Seconds: Per the MOM Designated Insurer list, there are 24 designated insurers for employers (list accurate as at 23 September 2026) and 6 for platform operators (list dated 26 December 2024). The new policy must take effect with zero gap from the old policy expiry - Section 24 of the Work Injury Compensation Act 2019 requires continuous cover for employees outside the classes the WIC (Insurance) Regulations exclude, such as those of banks, retailers and hotel-keepers, and Section 25 makes failure to insure them an offence. Existing claims under the old policy remain with the old insurer (run-off).

The 24 designated insurers for employers (MOM list, accurate as at 23 September 2026)

AIG Asia Pacific · Allianz Insurance Singapore · Allied World Assurance · Berkshire Hathaway Specialty · China Taiping · Chubb Insurance Singapore · EQ Insurance · ERGO Insurance · Etiqa Insurance · Great American Insurance · Great Eastern General · HL Assurance · Income Insurance · India International Insurance · Liberty Pte Limited · Lonpac Insurance · MS First Capital · MSIG Insurance · QBE Insurance · Singapore Life · Sompo Insurance · Tokio Marine · United Overseas Insurance · Zurich Insurance (Singapore Branch).

For platform operators (6 designated, list dated 26 Dec 2024): Chubb, Etiqa, Grabinsure (S), Great Eastern General, Income Insurance, Singapore Life.

The Step-by-Step

Step 1 - Confirm the new insurer is on the MOM list. Only designated insurers can issue WICA 2019-approved policies. Buying from a non-designated insurer means the policy is not WICA-compliant - you remain exposed under Section 24.

Step 2 - Plan zero-gap inception. The new policy's Commencement Date must follow the old policy's End Date with no gap; the prescribed Schedule to every approved policy states both dates. Any gap, even one day, is a Section 25 offence for employees within the duty, that is, outside the excluded classes. Per GIA's published Work Injury Compensation guidance for employers: "Finalise all insurance contracts and provide the information required to your insurer at least 21 days before policy commencement." MOM's work injury compensation insurance page carries the same instruction.

Step 3 - Submit the underwriting declaration. WICA underwriting requires:

  • Number of employees (manual / non-manual ≤ S$2,600 / non-manual > S$2,600 if extending cover)
  • Annual estimated wages by category
  • Job descriptions / nature of work (drives the rating tier)
  • Worksites
  • Claims history (the insurer's proposal form sets the period; AIG's Singapore form asks for the past 5 years' claim experience; request it from the incumbent at renewal)
  • WSH compliance and any active MOM stop-work orders or notices
  • For construction/marine/high-hazard: project details

Step 4: Display the new certificate of insurance and tell employees. The new insurer must issue a certificate of insurance (naming the insurer and the insured, with the policy's commencement and expiry dates) within 7 days after the policy commences (regulation 4 of the WIC (Insurance) Regulations 2020). The employer must display a copy at its place of business, or at each place of business where covered employees work, where every such employee can easily see and read it, for as long as the policy is valid; a certificate is displayed only during its own policy's validity (regulation 5; fine up to S$2,000, or S$4,000 for a repeat offender). Employees in the middle of an injury claim also need to know which insurer to contact.

Step 5 - Existing claims continue under the old insurer (run-off). Per WICA 2019 Section 32 ("Obligations of designated insurer"), designated insurers must process claims under their issued policies. Open claims at the date of changeover stay with the prior insurer; new accidents from the changeover date are claims under the new insurer.

Step 6 - Occupational disease claims with long latency. This is the trap. WICA covers the occupational diseases listed in its Second Schedule (e.g. noise-induced hearing loss, certain occupational cancers), and some appear long after exposure began. Once an employee has left the occupation, compensation for a listed disease contracted on or after 1 June 2012 is payable only if the incapacity begins, or death happens, within that disease's limitation period (12 months for noise-induced hearing loss). The compulsory policy terms exclude claims arising out of asbestosis and mesothelioma, for which the employer remains liable under WICA. Every approved policy carries the same compulsory terms, which cover a disease contracted in the circumstances in section 10(1) of the Act in respect of the employee's employment with the insured during the period of insurance; where two or more employers are liable for a disease contracted by a gradual process, section 11A apportions the compensation. When changing insurers, retain records of every WICA insurer you've held and the policy periods. A worker still in a noisy occupation who is diagnosed with NIHL in 2030 after exposure since 2022 will need the employer to identify which insurer was on cover for which years; if the worker left that occupation in 2026, an incapacity beginning in 2030 falls outside the 12-month limitation period.

Step 7: Policy details reach MOM through the insurer. Designated insurers transmit policy data to MOM. Per MOM's summary of the regulatory regime for WIC insurers: "Designated insurers are required to share claims information with MOM" and "will process all claims that are insured under their approved policies."

Common Mistakes

  1. Forgetting the 21-day lead time. Underwriting takes time. Last-minute switches risk inception delays and Section 25 exposure.
  2. Not requesting the loss run from the incumbent early. A proposal form can ask for claims history (AIG's asks for the past 5 years' claim experience and states that an incomplete proposal form will not be attended to), and designated insurers share claims information through MOM, which the compulsory terms let the insurer verify.
  3. Choosing the cheapest premium without checking common-law extension. The compulsory terms of an approved WIC policy cover the employer's liability under WICA and its regulations; common-law liability is additional cover the policy may provide, or a separate policy (WIC (Insurance) Regulations 2020, regulation 2(3); MOM lists common law liabilities among the riders an employer can discuss with its insurer). If you drop common-law cover during the switch, an injured worker can sue the company for damages above WICA limits and the new insurer won't respond.
  4. Forgetting Foreign Worker Medical Insurance (FWMI). Distinct from WICA; covers non-work-related medical for foreign workers.
  5. Cancelling the old policy before the new one is bound. Always keep the old policy live until you have the new policy schedule in hand.

What This Means for Your Business

WICA is a strict-liability regime. The designated-insurer requirement, the no-fault claims process, and the Section 24/25 offence structure exist because Parliament wanted certainty for injured workers. From an employer's standpoint, the practical risk during an insurer change is twofold: a coverage gap (immediate Section 25 exposure plus personal liability for any accident in the gap), and an attribution problem on long-tail occupational disease.

The mitigation is process discipline: 90 days before renewal, request loss runs and start the new underwriting; 30 days before, lock terms; day-of, confirm the policy schedule is received and its Commencement Date follows the old policy's End Date. Keep an immutable archive of every WICA policy schedule for at least 30 years (some occupational disease latencies are decades).

Questions to Ask Your Adviser

  1. Is the proposed new insurer on the current MOM Designated Insurer list?
  2. Are we maintaining or dropping the common-law extension during the switch?
  3. How will open claims from the prior policy year be handled, and have employees been informed?
  4. Do we have a complete archive of past WICA policies for occupational disease claim attribution?
  5. Has the FWMI policy been considered separately, and is renewal aligned?

Related Information

Published 4 May 2026. Source verified 4 May 2026.