Demonetisation will help us as savings will increase: Trevor Bull

Launching the first ever heart insurance for couples in India, Aviva Life Insurance chief executive officer and managing director Trevor Bull tells Veena Mani in an interview that health insurance will be one of his focus areas in India.

Edited excerpts:

Your company plans to have 5 million customers in India by 2020. What is your strategy? 

We plan to grow by alliances. Our plan is to partner companies that are digitally biased or new-age. Forging good alliances is the way forward for Aviva.

How much will your workforce increase?

We plan to grow digitally, which means we will not require salesmen. Existing salesmen can be used in other areas that might become more relevant. 

What opportunities do you see in the insurance market in India? 

We see opportunities in the SME and health sectors. We see huge potential in the startup space as well.

What will be the impact of demonetisation on the insurance industry?

In the short term we will experience some turbulence. However, in the medium and long term, it will help us as savings will increase. 

Despite huge increase in premium mobilisation, the number of policies sold is languishing. Is the industry facing difficulties?

The main problem with insurance is that it is viewed as investment. Insurance is not to be treated as an investment. For the last few years there has not been sustained growth. I feel the classical model of insurance will not work.