China's top court issued a new judicial interpretation of the country's insurance laws on Thursday, further regulating medical insurance forms and requiring courts to give more protection to insurance consumers.

The new interpretation was made necessary by an increase in disputes in the insurance industry, a reflection of the public's "high attention to health and life," said Liu Zhumei, deputy chief judge of the top court's tribunal specializing in civil disputes.

In 2009, there were 41,752 legal disputes over insurance contracts. That ballooned to 91,555 over just the past 10 months, the top court said.

The top court also encouraged the purchase of life insurance, citing the public's focus on health and personal security, Liu said.

The new regulations update judicial interpretation's published by the Supreme People's Court in 2009 and 2013.

The new rules will be effective Tuesday.

caoyin@chinadaily.com.cn