On Your Side: Our resident consumer advocate Keren Bobker answers questions on Sim card registrations, health insurance and UAE maternity leave rights.
I have seen news stories about everyone having to register their Sim cards for their phones, but I cannot find any more information. There is nothing on the Etisalat website and no one seems to know when the deadline is, although someone told me we didn't have long. Do you know what is happening and what we have to do? SK, Dubai
Last July, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) announced its "my number, my identification" programme, although details were limited and it's been far from well publicised. All mobile phone users of Etisalat and du services are required to re-register their numbers with their identity cards. The idea behind it is to prove ownership and reduce fraud and identity-related crimes. The TRA has announced that customers are to be divided into batches, so every customer should receive a text message to re-register their number by a particular deadline. Failure to do so can result in the number being cancelled. Anyone who has already received the message must get this done for their number to remain operational and the onus is on the individual to re-register their number. My understanding is that you don't have to wait until you receive a message, so people might as well get this done sooner rather than later. All you have to do is go to an outlet of your service provider and bring with you a copy of your Emirates ID to complete the form.
This is a question about health insurance and whether my insurer is right to refuse payment for treatment. On July 29 last year, a gastro-enterologist gave me an ultrasound to check my gall bladder and noticed an abnormality on my kidneys. She knew I was having my annual medical check-up on July 30 and suggested that I ask them to have a look. The report from the annual check-up stated that their own ultrasound showed no abnormalities. In October, I started a new job and completed a form to join their health insurance provider. I did not mention my kidneys on the form because the annual check-up had said everything was fine and I had thought no more about it. In November, I had another ultrasound scan for my gall bladder and the kidney abnormality showed up again. I was sent to a urologist, who said I needed some MRI scans to look at the kidneys in more detail. At this point, my new health insurance provider said it would not cover me because the urologist had spoken to my gastro-enterologist, who told him that she had first seen the abnormality in July, when I was not with this insurer. I can just about afford the MRI scans, but if I need surgery, I will be at my wits' end. At no point did I fraudulently try to withhold information from the insurer. Should I carry on trying to persuade the insurer or am I fighting a battle I cannot win? NC, Dubai
When anyone is asked to complete a medical questionnaire relating to any kind of insurance plan, they should be completely honest and fully disclose all relevant details. I have not seen the form in question, but experience tells me that the form would most likely have asked if NC had visited any doctors or undergone any investigations, not if any medical condition was detected. This means that even if any medical investigation did not result in treatment, or the patient was given the all-clear, it should be disclosed. It sounds as if the insurance is arranged on the basis that pre-existing conditions are not covered. It is highly unlikely that the insurance company would agree to pay for treatment for something that had previously been investigated, especially if not fully disclosed, as that is the basis on which medical insurance cover has been underwritten.
I have worked for my current employer for the past three years. I am now pregnant and due to give birth in May, but would be grateful for confirmation of the maternity benefits I am entitled to. I believe that I can take a month of maternity leave, but if I do, does that mean I will not be entitled to my full annual leave? This is also 30 days. I do not want to be difficult, but would like have as much time off as I am legally allowed. EV, Abu Dhabi
Article 30 of the UAE Labour Law states that "a working woman is entitled to maternity leave with full pay for a period of 45 days including the time before and after delivery, provided that her continuous period of service with the employer should not be less than a year …" It goes on to say: "A working woman, on the expiry of the maternity leave, may discontinue work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or intermittent days if such absence is due to illness which does not enable her to resume work." Medical evidence is required to support this. Finally, the law states that "leave provided for in the preceding two [sentences] shall not be computed as part of other leaves".
Keren Bobker is an independent financial adviser with Holborn Assets in Dubai. Contact her at keren@holbornassets.com
