Page 7 - Insurance

Simplify T&Cs in insurance policies to cut complaints: Irdai panel member

Insurance companies need to draft the terms and conditions of the policy in a language that is simple and easy-to-understand, which will help in reducing the grievances of customers, an IRDA advisory committee member said on Monday. IRDA's Insurance Ombudsman Advisory Committee member Pushpa Girimaji also stressed on the need to reduce the number of 'non-entertainable complaints' by the insurance ombudsman. Insurance Ombudsman is a quasi-judicial grievance redressal machinery to resolve complaints of insured persons against life and non-life insurance companies. At an event to mark the foundation day of the insurance ombudsman, Girimaji also stressed on the need for insurers to be fair in deciding insurance claims of customers. "There is a need to bring down the number of complaints in the insurance sector. The terms and conditions specified in insurance policies should be drafted in a way that it is simple and easily understood," Girimaji said.

BS BFSI Summit: 'Changes to surrender value norms in interest of customers'

Apart from commission structures, the insurance companies can also try other levers to absorb the impact

ESIC enrols 2.07 mn new members in Aug, net additions rise by 6.8%

Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) logged a 6.8 per cent increase in new enrollments of members to 20.74 lakh under the ESI Scheme in August 2024 compared to the year-ago period. ESIC had added 19.42 lakh new members in August 2023, a labour ministry statement said. According to the statement, the provisional payroll data of ESIC reveals that 20.74 lakh new employees have been added in the month of August 2024. As many as 28,917 new establishments have been brought under the social security ambit of the ESI Scheme in the month of August 2024 thus ensuring social security to more workers. The data showed that of the total members added during the month, 9.89 lakh employees amounting to around 47.68 per cent of the total registrations belong to the age group of up to 25 years. Also, the gender-wise analysis of the payroll data indicates that net enrolment of female members was 4.14 lakh in August 2024. Besides, a total of 60 transgender employees have also got registered u

How income protection insurance will help your family's financial security

Income protection insurance plans ensure that your income is protected and your family has money in crises

Insurance industry can partner with telcos, fintechs to expand reach: LIC

State-owned life insurance behemoth LIC's chief executive and managing director Siddhartha Mohanty on Tuesday pitched for using the e-commerce and telecom network to distribute policies deep in the country. "As we are serious about 'insurance for all', we must rethink how we distribute and market insurance products," Mohanty said, speaking at an event organised by CII here. He said the current channels, including agents, brokers, and bancassurance have been effective, but fraught with its own limitations given the challenge of taking insurance to each citizen of the country. Specifically, the current models have "limitations" to taking insurance to the vast and underserved rural market, the LIC executive said, adding that the future is in opening non-traditional channels. "Collaborating with non-traditional players, such as telecom companies, fintech firms and e-commerce platforms, we can significantly increase our outreach," he said. "These organisations have unparalleled access

Cyber insurance is crucial for modern business but coverage has limits

It provides financial protection and access to critical resources, such as expert legal counsel and incident response teams

Insurance benefits for EPFO members extended up to Rs 7 lakh

Till April 2021, maximum benefits to legal heirs of a deceased employee was capped at Rs 6 lakh

Panels on GST rationalisation, cutting tax on insurance to meet on Oct 19

The two ministerial panels set up by the GST Council are slated to meet on October 19 to discuss GST rate rationalisation and lowering 18 per cent tax rate on health and life insurance premiums. This would be the first meeting of the 13-member GoM, under Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, which was set up to suggest tax on health and life insurance premiums. The panel, which includes ministers from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, has been mandated to submit its report to the GST Council by October end. Currently an 18 per cent GST is levied on health and life insurance premiums and the GoM would be suggesting tax rate of health/medical insurance including individual, group, family floater and other medical insurance for various categories like senior citizens, middle class, and persons with mental illness. It would also suggest tax rates on life insurance, including term

Insurance benefits for EPFO members extended retrospectively from April 28

Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday announced extension of the enhanced insurance benefits for all members of retirement fund body EPFO under Employees' Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) scheme. The move will ensure up to Rs 7 lakh of life cover to more than 6 crore EPFO members. The scheme has been extended with retrospective effect from April 28, 2024 onwards, Mandaviya told reporters here. EDLI Scheme, launched in 1976, seeks to provide insurance benefits to members of the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in order to ensure some financial assistance to each member's family in case of the member's death. In 2018, the minimum insurance cover of Rs 1.5 lakh was introduced under the scheme. Till April 2021, the maximum benefits to the legal heir of the deceased employee was capped at Rs 6 lakh as per the criteria defined in the EDLI Scheme. Later, the government, through a notification issued on April 28, 2021, enhanced both minimum and maximum benefits

Prasun Sikdar appointed as MD, CEO of Bima Sugam India Federation for 3 yrs

Sikdar's appointment as MD and CEO was approved by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India

LIC launches single-premium micro-term insurance for financial groups

LIC's new plan offers simple and affordable life insurance for financial institutions to cover their members

US casualty insurers' stocks slump as hurricane season brings losses

Insurers are expected to face catastrophe-related claims for billions of dollars from a devastating hurricane season

How to switch from group insurance policy to individual insurance

Transitioning from a group insurance policy to an individual one is a crucial step that requires careful planning and timely action

Why senior citizens should combine Ayushman Bharat with private insurance

For expenses exceeding the Rs 5 lakh limit, as well as treatments at other hospitals, the private insurance coverage would be applicable.

Trai's whitelisting norms: Majority of banks, insurers in compliance

Mandatory registration of URLs, APKs, OTT links in SMS traffic starts

Insurance premium may rise as revised surrender value kicks in from Tue

Insurance premiums may increase or the commission of agents could see a reduction as the revised surrender value proposed by the sector regulator IRDAI comes into force from Tuesday. Earlier this year, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) introduced revised surrender value guidelines to offer better returns to policyholders exiting early from their life insurance policies. A surrender value in insurance refers to the amount paid by the insurers to the policyholder upon terminating the policy before its maturity date. If the policyholder surrenders during the policy tenure, the earnings and savings portion will be paid to him or her. The regulator has emphasised the need for insurers to ensure 'reasonableness and value for money' for both exiting and continuing policyholders when determining surrender values. According to a senior official of the private sector insurance company, to meet the revised surrender charges, life insurers would either raise .

Insurance companies enhance tech spending to meet evolving customer needs

Companies' tech spending sees marked rise to meet evolving consumer demands

Bandhan Life partners with Bandhan bank to boost insurance business

In a bid to focus on new business after acquiring Aegon Life early this year and undergoing a renaming exercise, Bandhan Life Insurance on Thursday announced a strategic partnership with Bandhan Bank to distribute life insurance products through its extensive network of 1,700 branches. Bandhan Life stated it has plans to rope in more banks on board in the near future to strengthen its bancassurance distribution channel. "Initially, we are focusing on Bandhan Bank to distribute our insurance products as we shift our focus to new business. We aim to partner with 2-3 more banks and explore other multi-channel distribution strategies in due course," Bandhan Life MD & CEO Satishwar B said. He added that while Aegon Life's legacy business was primarily acquired online, Bandhan Life will focus on building offline distribution channels to drive growth. Initially, around 550 bank branches will distribute two new life insurance products tailored for Bandhan Bank customers, the company has ..

SBI Insurance unveils 'SBIG Health Super Top-Up' policy: Check details

A one-time welcome discount of 5% will be applied to all policies, provided the proposer purchases the SBIG Health Super Top-Up insurance within 5 days of receiving the quote from the company

Gen Z & Millennials drive 85% of insurance sales, reveal report

78% of such advisors conduct most of their business online, according to Turtlemint's data