Reliance Life sold most policies among pvt players in Q1

Anil Ambani Group's life insurance venture Reliance Life has sold the highest number of policies among private players in the first quarter of the current fiscal.

The insurer sold 4.93 lakh policies during the quarter against 4.06 lakh policies in the corresponding period last year, an increase of 21 per cent, according to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) data.

Reliance Life Insurance was way ahead of its peer Birla Sunlife, which sold 3.62 lakh policies in the first quarter.
    
According to Reliance Life President and Executive Director Malay Ghosh, "Our innovative product range, expanding pan-India distribution network and workforce and unwavering trust of our customers helped us reach these business milestones."
    
ICICI Prudential, the largest private insurer in terms of premium collection, sold 3.35 lakh policies in the first quarter of this fiscal while SBI Life managed to sell only 1.22 lakh policies during the same period.
    
Country's largest insurer Life Insurance Corporation stole the overall show in the insurance industry with 12 per cent growth to 66.21 lakh policies in the first quarter of 2010-11 from 59.08 lakh policies during the same period a year earlier.
    
The 23 life insurers collectively mopped up Rs 25,522 crore in first-year premium during the first quarter of the current fiscal compared to Rs 14,456 crore in the year-ago period, a growth of over 76 per cent.
    
LIC cornered Rs 18,740 crore of the Rs 25,522 crore overall business in the first quarter.
    
Ghosh further said that Reliance Life's new business premium grew 20 per cent to Rs 605 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2010, from Rs 506 crore in the same period a year ago.
    
The company's distribution network stands at 1,247 branches by the end of the June quarter against 1,145 branches at the end of June 30, 2009.
    
The number of agents witnessed a 24 per cent increase at 1.99 lakh at the end of the first quarter compared to 1.61 lakh agents as on June 30, 2009.