GIC in the News

PAN India Insurance Awareness and Education Campaign
Wednesday 28 May, 2025
General Insurance Council on behalf of the industry has recently launched a PAN India Insurance Awareness and Education Campaign, aimed at raising awareness around the value of general insurance across the country. The Films / Hoardings made their appearance during the first week of May 2025 in key Major Cities/ Towns and on TV Channels.

Beyond Silos
Saturday 07 June, 2025
During my tenure at a large insurance company, the head of a Branch and I visited a large commercial bank. The bank was placing a considerable amount of health insurance business with that Branch of the insurance company. During the conversation, I was glad to note that the Bank was very happy with our services

Responsible AI: Super Hero Suit We Must Learn to Wear Responsibly
Saturday 14 June, 2025
It was one of those quiet Monday mornings. I was making chai, the house still echoing with the sleepiness of a new week. My 13-year-old son, half-dressed for school, looked up from his cricket bat and asked me a question that stopped me mid-stir.

IRDAI Launches Shared Hospital Network and Faster Cashless Claims
Monday 19 May, 2025
In a move to make health insurance more accessible and affordable for Indian citizens, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has initiated a shared hospital network and streamlined cashless claim process. This measure is set to enhance transparency in treatment costs and expedite insurance services for policyholders

Insurer can’t reject claim over diabetes non-disclosure, rules Bengaluru consumer forum
Thursday 29 May, 2025
Diabetes, though a common lifestyle condition, can't be treated as a non-disclosed pre-existing illness when it comes to health insurance, the IV additional Bengaluru Urban district consumer commission ruled recently. It termed an insurer's denial of an elderly couple's claim a deficiency in service and ordered it to pay Rs 76,000 to clear the claim.

India approves three Russian insurers for marine cover till February 2026
Friday 16 May, 2025
India has approved three Russian insurers, including a unit of top lender Sberbank, to provide marine cover to ships arriving at Indian ports, a government notification shows, helping Moscow maintain oil supplies to a key market.

Heatwave Insurance
Sunday 25 May, 2025
Heatwave Insurance Scheme has been launched by Climate Resilience for All (CRA) and Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA), in which maximum temperature is 40 degrees

Mediclaim policy amount can t be deducted from medical compensation HC
Friday 25 April, 2025
A sum received by a person under a mediclaim policy cannot be deducted from the compensation amount payable to the claimant for medical expenses under provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, the Bombay High Court has said. The amount under a mediclaim policy is received in view of a contract entered into by the claimant with the insurance company, a full bench of Justices A. S Chandurkar, Milind Jadhav and Gauri Godse said in its judgement on March 28.

Car owner liable to pay crash damages if hired driver has no licence HC
Monday 24 March, 2025
The MP High Court has said that if a driver hired by a person doesn't have a valid driving licence and dies in an accident, the person hiring him would be liable to pay compensation to his kin rather than the insurance company with which the vehicle is insured. The court ordered the insurance company to pay the compensation awarded to the family of the deceased driver by the labour court for now and subsequently recover it from the owner of the vehicle.

The Great AI Evolution From AI to Gen AI
Thursday 17 April, 2025
Imagine planning a road trip. Initially, you’re the driver, using a paper map (traditional insurance operations). Then, GPS enters the scene, giving you directions (AI-Gen – automation and AI-generated insights). But soon, self-driving cars take over, not just guiding you but making real-time decisions based on traffic, weather, and even your favorite coffee stops (Agentic AI – autonomous decision-making). That’s the journey AI is taking in the insurance world.

NHA enhances health benefits package rate to rope in more hospitals
Monday 24 February, 2025
In a bid to encourage more corporate hospitals to join the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), the National Health Authority (NHA) has revised the Health Benefits Package (HBP) by introducing a tiered incentive system to make package rates more attractive and viable for private sector healthcare providers.

India Expands Mental Health Insurance Coverage
Tuesday 25 March, 2025
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has introduced a new Master Circular aimed at enhancing health insurance options for policyholders. Effective from May 29, 2024, this directive mandates insurers to offer products that cover a wide range of medical conditions, including pre-existing and chronic diseases. Additionally, insurers must comply with the Mental Health Care Act of 2017, ensuring that mental health coverage is included in their offerings.

As cyber threats evolve
Wednesday 02 April, 2025
Rs 20,000 crore, a staggering figure! According to a CloudSek report, India (check if it is corporate losses or personal or both put together) could face this much of loss current year because of cybercrime. That cybercrime has reached another level as these days cybercriminals have started using sophisticated AI tools, which gives them power to multiply. India could face a whopping 1 trillion cyberattacks by 2033 unless businesses do more manage risk.

Why Does Awareness of Insurance Not Translate to Action?
Thursday 13 February, 2025
Despite concerted efforts by the insurance industry, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), and the General Insurance Council, the penetration of general insurance in India remains abysmally low. While a lack of awareness was historically cited as the primary culprit, today’s reality is far more complex. Awareness campaigns like "Bima Bemisaal" have ensured people know about insurance, but awareness alone isn’t leading to action. Why is this the case?

New Zealand Health insurance premiums are surging
Friday 21 March, 2025
Medical costs in New Zealand have surged significantly in recent times in the Asia-Pacific region and across the world too according to Aon's 2025 Global Medical Trend Rates report. According to the report, New Zealand’s medical trend rate surged from 7.4% in 2024 to 14.5% in 2025, marking one of the sharpest year-on-year increases.

Confronting Cancer Crisis with Health Insurance Plans Providing Cancer Coverage
Thursday 13 February, 2025
Cancer is a major health concern, affecting a wide cross-section of India’s population. The Indian Cancer Congress (ICC) has highlighted that India is facing a significant increase in the absolute number of new cases annually. In the last decade, the number of cancer diagnoses has surged. Currently, 1.4 million new cancer cases are detected each year, with projections indicating a rise to 2 million by 2040. As per a report by the National Cancer Registry Programme (NCRP) under the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research (ICMR-NCDIR) about one in nine people in India will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. This is an alarming situation and needs our urgent attention.

Singapore s general insurance sector grows 6.3% to $8.08bn in 2024
Friday 28 March, 2025
Singapore's general insurance sector continued its upward trajectory in 2023, recording solid growth across both domestic and offshore segments, according to the General Insurance Association of Singapore (GIA). Total gross written premiums rose by 6.3% y-o-y to reach S$10.8bn ($8.08bn), while overall underwriting profit climbed 5.6% to S$642.31m. The domestic market saw gross written premiums grow by 8.3%, outpacing the previous year’s performance.

Agentic AI: The Thinking Machine That Will Revolutionize Indian Insurance
Thursday 06 February, 2025
"Sir, your claim has been settled." Rahul blinked at his phone. No endless paperwork, no waiting for a call from the insurer—just a simple notification confirming his insurance claim was processed. He hadn’t even spoken to a human.

PM Jan Dhan Yojana: Overdraft facility of Rs 10000, accident insurance up to
Saturday 28 December, 2024
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana: The government has shared lesser-known benefits of PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) scheme for its subscribers. The PMJDY is a scheme that provides a basic bank account to every unbanked adult in India

Madhya Pradesh and Kerala have highest insurance coverage of senior citizens over 70 years under Ayushman Vay Vandana
Tuesday 28 January, 2025
The Ayushman Vay Vandana initiative, which aims to provide free healthcare to senior citizens aged 70 and above, has enrolled 25 lakh beneficiaries as of December 2024. This represents inclusion of 4 percent of eligible 6 crore senior citizens over 70 years since launch of the program in October.

Lessons from LA Fires: Get the Right Fire Insurance for Your House
Wednesday 15 January, 2025
The recent devastating fires in Los Angeles have underscored the importance of having the right fire insurance for homeowners. As communities rebuild and recover, it’s a reminder that preparation is key when protecting one’s property

Responses attributed to Mr. Chirag Bhojani - Head - Data Science & Analytics
Tuesday 24 December, 2024
1. What is the current state of AI adoption in India? Is there a surge on insurers leveraging AI to streamline processes?

Bridging the Gap: Unlocking the Potential of Health Insurance in India
Thursday 13 February, 2025
India’s health insurance sector stands at a curious crossroads. Despite a population exceeding 1.4 billion and growing economic prosperity, insurance penetration in comparison remains alarmingly low. Only 50 million individuals have personal retail health insurance, leaving a vast majority vulnerable to the risk of financial burden arising out of potential medical exigencies. While this glaring gap is a national challenge, it also presents an opportunity - a chance to expand coverage, drive awareness, and reshape the healthcare landscape of the world’s most populous country

China's new energy vehicle growth transforms the country's motor insurance market
Friday 10 January, 2025
As China continues to lead the way globally in producing and selling new energy vehicles (NEV), the trend has spurred a sixfold increase in related insurance premiums for this segment in just the past five years alone, according to a new AM Best report. NEV premiums now represent 11.5% of China’s total motor insurance business, momentum that AM Best expects to continue as a key element of future market growth. However, the higher claims frequency and repairs costs associated with NEVs are posing a challenge for small and medium-sized insurers when it comes to profitability.

Malaysia: Insurers to get more transparent on medical premium hikes
Friday 10 January, 2025
All insurance companies in Malaysia must implement measures for premium sharing with policyholders starting from 15 January 2025. Country’s deputy finance minister Lim Hui Ying has said that individuals who received premium increase notices last year can contact their insurers

Cut mediclaim sum from crash victims total relief says Karnataka HC
Tuesday 04 February, 2025
The amount received by an accident victim under a mediclaim policy must be deducted from the total compensation under the head of medical expenses and hospitalisation charges, Karnataka HC has held based on Motor Vehicles Act. Justice Hanchate Sanjeevkumar directed Oriental Insurance Company to pay Rs 4.93 lakh along with interest of 6 percent a year to the family of S Hanumanthappa, a resident of Marathahalli in Bengaluru, after deducting Rs 1.8 lakh he had received from mediclaim.

Wedding Insurance
Thursday 15 May, 2025
In India, weddings are one of the most significant milestones in life, often planned with great care and substantial financial investment. The industry is now valued at a staggering $130 billion (₹10.7 lakh crore). The costs continue to rise, with budgets surging 14.29 per cent year-over-year, reaching an average of ₹32-35 lakh per wedding.

Australia: Reducing insurance taxes can bring premium relief
Friday 16 May, 2025
Reducing state government taxes in Australia is perhaps the best and fastest way to bring relief for the insurance customers who are burdened by higher insurance premium in the aftermath of rising natural disasters according to QBE chairman Mike Wilkins

China: Tip-off service to combat medical insurance fraud
Friday 18 April, 2025
In its fight against fraud in health insurance funds China has launched a series of measures in the recent past. In yet another move, China's National Healthcare Security Administration in April this year launched a tip-off service via its official WeChat account, enabling social organisations and the public to report leads on medical insurance fraud.

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