IRDAI asks corporate agents to maintain policy database

In order to stop mis-selling of insurance products by banks, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has asked corporate agents to maintain a database and give its access to the regulator.
"One of the problems that we have encountered when we inspected intermediaries, like banks, is that they do not have much of idea of the policy procured by them and who has procured it, among others. That is one of the loopholes we want to plug," IRDAI chairman T S Vijayan told reporters here after inaugurating the regulator's second regional office here today. The other regional office is in Delhi.

The policy and its sourcing will be mapped in the records of the corporate agents, which will then be made accessible to IRDAI.
"If there are complaints about any corporate agents, we will be able to focus on it as where it is happening and who is doing it," Vijayan said.
The regulator has asked corporate agents to maintain the database and give remote access to it.
When asked about the licence to re-insurers, he said some of the entities have approached to the regulator.

"Some have expressed interest, but I don't know whether it is exploratory thing or they are serious about it. Up to half a dozen have shown seriousness about it," he said.

Vijayan further said new accounting norms for insurance companies will soon be out. "We would like to see reporting segment wise," he said.
For non-life insurance companies, IRDAI has separated accounting into 11 categories and the insurers will have to maintain and report 11 accounts. "So that we will come to know there is no cross subsidisation between the product and the product pricing is adequate," Vijayan said.
To a query on dilution of promoters holding, he said, "We are grappling with many regulations. When we listed the urgency of this regulation then we thought this is not that urgent. But ultimately companies have to go for listing."

SOn the issue of putting a cap on salaries given to chief executive officers of insurance companies, IRDAI member-finance and investment, V R Iyer said, there were no plans to regulate the salary, but the regulator will be laying down some broad parameters for it.
Vijayan further said the new regional office will have two departments-inspection team, supervision team, initially.