Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Finance Solutions with Sharia Insurance

When Pak Taufik died of newly purchased cars collided, then the 'left' is not just a new car badly damaged, but also a widow with orphans 2 people. In addition, there are still 10 years remaining mortgage expenses, plus the burden of an existing credit card debt. Unimaginable how big financial burden to be borne by the young widow, who had only rely on income from the husband's income. How it is with the future of her two children are funny-funny? Bagaimakah with future studies, which require a lot of cost? How it is with living expenses that must be paid for everyday purposes?

The above is not a true story, but not impossible can be experienced by anyone. Did not have many examples around us, families who originally live in peace had been neglected simply because of critical illness, permanent disability or even death befalling the breadwinner. If so, then how the anticipation?

From the Islamic point of view, help and sympathize them the unfortunate is a liability. Various verses of the Quran suggests that, among others, in surat Al-Baqarah verse 177 and the letter of Al-Maa'un verses 1-7. All this is a form of concern for others, as well as indications of devotion to God Almighty. Did not the Prophet Muhammad has said that people of faith with each other is like building a mutually reinforcing, so that if one part suffers pain, then other parts of the body will also feel it.

In addition, Allah also calls attention to our serious effort to not leave the weak generation (Surat An-Nisa: 9), good faith, intellectual, economic and physical.

The issue is, how noble guidance is implemented and institutionalized, so it can cover more audiences, in addition to assistance or benefits provided sufficient means to empower or restore their financial conditions are overwritten by disasters.

Sharia Insurance

The noble teachings of Islam commands us to sympathize people who lost their possessions, death of relatives, and other calamities. Such actions are a form of concern and solidarity (itsar), as well as mutual assistance (ta'awun) among members of the community, both Muslim and non-Muslims. In this way, a sense of brotherhood (ukhuwah) will be more solid. Those who are not overwhelmed with grief stricken disaster that drag on and not fall into despair, even avoid the possibility of living in impoverished or lose the future. However, in ways helpful and even then must be in line with sharia (Sura 42: 13). They should not contain elements of gharar (uncertainty), maysir (chancy), usury, and other things that are immoral. Premises other words, ta'awun be placed on the values of devotion to virtue, and not a violation of Islamic law that can lead to conflict or hostility. This was as the command of Allah in surat Al-Maidah: 2: "Mutual help menolonglah you in righteousness and piety, and do not you guys mutual help each other in sin and enmity"

Islamic insurance is an alternative system, to be exact replacement, for patterns that apply to conventional insurance or contract of exchange systems that are not in line with Islamic law. In Islamic insurance system, each participant intends to mutual assistance to each other by setting aside some funds as a contribution virtue (tabarru '). These funds are used to sympathize anyone among participants who experienced disaster insurance. So it was not in the form of an exchange agreement dianatara two parties, but a mutual agreement for mutual assistance (takaafuli) among all participants.

All premium funds collected are managed by the company to invest, re-insurance, distribution of insurance benefits, and distribution of operating surplus. For all these management services, the company asked for contributions of participants whose numbers must be approved by the participants, as well as part of the operating surplus as agreed with the company's percentage of participants who nisbahnya determined from the outset.

Solidarity, Transparency, and Consistency

The phenomenon of Islamic insurance is a unique phenomenon (al-ghuraba) in the middle of a capitalistic economic currents and individualistic. Financially, the system allows the acquisition of Islamic insurance (benefits) the better. Simultaneously, the spirit of solidarity was fostered through the contributions of virtue (tabarru ') insurance participants.

Tabarru system 'and for the results (mudaraba) stipulated in the operational pattern of Islamic insurance requires transparency in the funding status and its management. Similarly, in terms of contribution to the management fee, which set aside a bit of a premium the first year alone, clearly defined and become part of the deal participants. Therefore, since the beginning of the participants have a clear component disetorkannya premiums, namely tabarru '(dues kabajikan), savings (absolute rights of participants), and the contribution of management fees (30% first year premium). In addition, participants can see the progress from time to time in the development of the policy cash value, namely the accumulation of savings and for the results. Therefore, when the participant intends to resign in the agreement for any reason, the cash value that can be received can be calculated in value and clear the source (derived from savings and for the result). Similarly, death claims received by the heir of the participants, consisting of insurance benefits or compensation virtue (sourced from tabarru-tabarru 'participants), the savings that have been deposited in the savings and profit sharing.

In terms of investment, in addition to considerations of profitability, business compliance with the provisions of sharia is a determinant of investment decisions. Therefore, the role of the Sharia Supervisory Board to be very important in the dynamics of development of Islamic insurance business, things that are not found in conventional insurance.

Finally, it is not wrong to say that Islamic insurance operations as described above and Sharia Supervisory Board's involvement in the whole chain of activities and Islamic insurance products illustrate the consistency of sharia as a system ta'awun (cooperative mutual assistance) which is based on value- Islamic values.