GIC in the News

Cyber Risks in Insurance Sector
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
In recent years, the insurance industry, like many others, has become increasingly reliant on technology. While this has provided numerous benefits, it has also introduced new hazards, particularly cyber threats.

Empathy AI in the Insurance Sector
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
"Empathy AI has the potential to bridge the gap between human understanding and machine intelligence, creating a world where technology is not only smart but also compassionate." - Unknown.

How AI, data analytics is going to shape future of Insurance underwriting in India
Thursday 13 April, 2023
Increased internet penetration and mobile data usage has made the world around us increasingly digital. Consumers today are leveraging UPI for digital payments, Alexa to turn on their favorite music and using Swiggy / Zomato for their dining needs. In this rapidly changing world, a predominantly physical-intensive industry such as insurance is also undergoing rapid transformation. Data analytics and new-age technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are leading this change.

ESG and principles of sustainable insurance
Thursday 20 April, 2023
Term ESG - Environmental, Social and Governance is gaining lot of attention in the recent time. ESG principles are adopted by the companies to ensure their operations does not hamper environmental and social development and don’t go against corporate governance standards. Companies having good ESG score are attracting more investors. Investments are no longer only related to the value for money, but it is an investment in sustainable future.

The Premium Score Board
Friday 14 April, 2023
The financial year 2022-23 for the non-life industry has come to an end with an impressive growth of premium by 16.36% over previous year. The total premium of non-life industry stands at Rs 256920.22 crores i.e approximately $ 31 billion.

Expenses of Management (EOM) capping: a step in the right direction
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
Insurance is critical to financially safeguard every citizen of the country, yet the penetration is less than ideal. One of the biggest problems that the Indian Insurance industry suffers from is that of perception. This is an industry that continues to pay claims and continues to bleed; the industry combined ratio stands at about 118%. Despite such a high combined ratio, the industry suffers from trust issues. The unhealthy combined ratio has continued to impact many insurers and had an adverse impact on their viability and long-run sustainability. However, the current IRDAI regulator is working relentlessly to introduce measures that will help improve the long-term sustainability of insurers and thus enable them to reach further to the grass root level and address customer worries.

Interview with KS Vishwanath
Thursday 13 April, 2023
Mr KS Vishwanath a renowned international marine insurance expert and author of a widely acclaimed book ‘Insuring Cargoes’ published by London market shares his views in a candid interview with editor of the newsletter.

Health insurance industry and evolving consumer expectation
Thursday 13 April, 2023
As we slowly reboot and stride back to normal, we should not forget how a pandemic like COVID-19 can wreak havoc across every walk of life – be it country, organisation or people. It has changed the perception and outlook towards most of the things we used to do, forcing us to relook at every aspect of our normal life.

Importance of buying a Travel Insurance when travelling abroad
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
Traveling to a foreign land is one of its kind experience; one gets to explore new cultures, cuisines, places, and much more. Traveling gives a new perspective, adds new elements to one’s personality, and helps attain meaningful lessons. Traveling abroad requires meticulous planning right from visa to tickets, from accommodation to itinerary, etc. One crucial component while planning a foreign trip is ‘Travel insurance,’ which people often tend to take lightly. However, good travel insurance covers you against various exigencies that you may encounter on your trip and ensures that you enjoy a worry-free vacation. In the next few paragraphs, I will talk about the various benefits of travel insurance and what it covers.

Cyber risk cover is a necessity
Friday 14 April, 2023
Cyber risk has consistently featured amongst the top three risks in line with the global trends. Cyber-attacks in India rose by around 200% in 2020, to 1,158,208 from 394,499 in 2019, according to Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) data. Cyber risks continued to remain at elevated levels in 2021, with more than 600,000 cyber security incidents being reported in the first six months of the year alone. India is among the most impacted countries due to cyber incidents, and organizations across sectors have been affected.

Sanctions and the Insurance Industry
Thursday 13 April, 2023
Sanctions and International trade are two concepts that have a significant impact on the General Insurance market. Sanctions are restrictions or penalties imposed on countries or individuals to achieve specific policy goals, while international trade involves the exchange of goods and services between countries. The interplay between these two concepts affects the General Insurance market in several ways.

Genesis of Rules regarding Expenses of Management
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
In our first part, we saw what constitutes expenses of management and what are the current regulations in force for controlling expenses of management

Interview with Ms Neerja Kapur
Saturday 11 February, 2023
Mrs. Neerja Kapoor is the first Chairman cum managing director of the New India Assurance company, the largest non-life insurer in India. The editor of this newsletter talked to her on important issues facing the industry for her views. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

Interview with Prof Bejon K Misra EC member GI Council
Monday 13 February, 2023
The insurance industry is at the cusp of a significant change, and most of the changes aim to reach the entire population of India and make insurance services easier for the consumer. What is the present state of consumer experience, and how do you view it for the future?

Expenses of management (EoM) Regulations
Friday 10 February, 2023
Expenses of management (EoM) Regulations for non-life companies are essential part of growth and development of any insurance company in India. The compliance with EOM regulations or forbearance due to compelling reasons require a deep understanding of these regulations. Mr S Skandan, Advisor GI Council looking after regulations and accounting dives deep into the subject in a three article series to be carried in this newsletter. The first article of the series gives an introduction of the rules

Insurers liability a big concern for ships stranded in Ukraine
Saturday 11 February, 2023
Ships stranded around the east Ukrainian port of Mykolaiv are set to be the centre of war risk insurance payouts amounting to hundreds of millions of US dollars on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion. The region has the highest concentration of ships that have remained stranded at Ukraine ports since Russian tanks rolled across the Ukraine border on 24 February last year

Usage-based insurance plans in motor insurance
Monday 13 February, 2023
The evolution of auto insurance in India is driven by a growing focus on the needs of customers. Usage-based insurance plans, such as PAYD (pay-as-you-drive), PHYD (pay-howyou-drive), and combination of PAYD and PHYD, offer customers the flexibility and convenience they desire, allowing them to pay only for the coverage they use

What is Health Insurance?
Monday 13 February, 2023
Hippocrates famously said, ‘Health is the greatest of human blessings.’ There is much wisdom and foresight in these words. Health is our most precious asset, and it is only befitting that we take all measures to safeguard our health. However, despite our best efforts to remain fit and healthy, we are prone to meet medical exigency at any point in time. We should plan for such emergencies in advance to ensure that we are well-equipped to handle them as and when they surface. Today comprehensive health insurance has become a must-have due to increasing medical inflation, the early onset of health issues, and the rise of lifestyle-related disorders. An adequate health insurance plan provides financial assistance during situations like illnesses and accidents.

The digital revolution in the Indian insurance industry post-COVID-19 pandemic
Monday 13 February, 2023
“When you lose, don’t lose the lesson” goes one of the famous quotes by the reverted Dalai Lama. In this context, the Indian insurance industry, even as it grappled with the overnight challenges thrown up by the pandemic, has applied the lessons learnt, and is marching steadily towards the digital transformation of the industry at large.

Bima Sugam
Friday 02 December, 2022
India is the 10th largest insurance market in the world, and it's poised to enter in the top four or five largest insurance markets in the coming 5-6 years much ahead of such predictions by many research organizations

Conference on 21st November 2022 for a briefing on iRAD & e-DAR
Monday 21 November, 2022
India has a dubious distinction of having the highest number of road accidents in the World. Road accidents are human tragedies which involve enormous human suffering and they impose huge socio-economic costs in terms of untimely deaths, injuries, and loss of potential income. Fast DAR as per Supreme courts directives could speed relief for the victims. Accordingly, an app for enabling fast DAR is developed by NIC

Exposure draft on reinsurance
Monday 12 December, 2022
Transforming Reinsurance Sector in India Foram Chauhan is Deputy Manager (Legal & Compliance) in Munich Re which is one of the major reinsurance companies having branch in India. In her article on the proposed draft on Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Re-insurance) (First Amendment) Regulations, 2022, she explains how these reforms will change the reinsurance landscape in India.

IRDAI’s reform run continues
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has committed to enable ‘Insurance for All’ by 2047, where every citizen has an appropriate life, health and property insurance cover and every enterprise is supported by appropriate insurance solutions and also to make Indian insurance sector globally attractive

Whose insurance is it anyway
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
Recently, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in Texco Marketing Pvt. Ltd. v. Tata AIG General Insurance Co. Ltd. and Ors. Civil Appeal No. 8249 of 2022, examined the contours of an exclusion clause in a Standard Fire & Special Perils policy. The authors examine the latest verdict of the Supreme Court and adumbrate its potential effects for the stakeholders who are looking at or are already involved in contentious issues over operability of insurance policy terms, conditions and exclusions.

What is parametric insurance
Monday 12 December, 2022
Extending parametric insurance to consumers provides insurers with an immediate, data-triggered option for claims payments. The term ‘parametric insurance’ describes a type of insurance contract that insures a policyholder against the occurrence of a specific event by paying a set amount based on the magnitude of the event, as opposed to the magnitude of the losses in a traditional indemnity policy.”

Home Insurance
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
Every Year in our Country there are huge losses suffered by households due to Natural Perils like- Flood, Storm, and Landslides. However, It is really sad to note that in spite of repeated losses due to Floods and rarely due to Earthquake, there has been no urgency or need felt by Indian households to take a General Insurance policy that covers not only the Structure of the House but also the contents which are valuable and costs a lot to replace.

Why Terms and conditions in an insurance policy are necessary?
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
Often the insurance policies are criticized for the detailed terms and conditions it carries as opaque or technical wordings which are not understood by common people. No doubt the simple wording of a contract is always a desirable feature for any contract and the industry is consciously working to make it as simple as possible but many a times the criticism is unfair. For example, If you pick up any document hard or soft copy or OS update in any industry, which has an agreement or a contract, offer, free offer, software update or any sale purchase proposition you will always find the word terms and conditions apply in fine print. Most of the purchase or download will not take place unless you agree to the terms of the agreement which run into thousands of words which no one wants to read.

The Noble business of solving worries
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
When you evaluate career prospects, what are the key points that you consider? In my experience, most people look for career opportunities that offer stability, growth, work satisfaction, and holistic development. At times you crave independence, you want to be your own boss, and of course, decide what you want to earn and grow at your own pace. You want to be an entrepreneur but are confused as to how to go about it and what to choose. One such business that offers all the ingredients for building a lasting and happy career, wiping the tears of customers, has unlimited potential and earning capabilities, is the business of becoming an Insurance advisor.

How to avoid common mistakes while buying Health Insurance policy
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
Health insurance is becoming indispensable in the current times. Unhealthy lifestyle and food habits has made even our young population susceptible to many health conditions at an early stage in life. To add to that, high medical inflation and increasing frequency of epidemic such as dengue, malaria, typhoid and not to mention Covid-19 has made having health insurance more crucial than ever. So, here is a deep dive to ‘zero-in’ on the right health plan best suited for you and your family.

Global Recession 3.0 – Fasten Your Seatbelts with lessons from India
Tuesday 13 December, 2022
A general decline in the economic activity in two continuous quarters of a financial year in a country or a region is termed recession. And if that decline in economic activity spills over to other countries and breaches the borders, it gradually takes the form of a global recession that can be triggered by a lot of factors.

The Premium Score Board
Wednesday 14 December, 2022
In the financial year, at the end of November 2022, the general insurance industry has grown by 16.46% touching a Gross Direct Premium of Rs. 165,360.32 crores. The health insurance business growth at 22.54% and Motor insurance at 17.04% are the highest contributors to this growth.

IRDAI fires on all cylinders to deepen insurance penetration
Monday 10 October, 2022
Brace yourself for more tectonic policy shifts and exponential growth in the insurance sector in the next 24 months, as the new IRDAI chief Debasish Panda is a regulator in a hurry. Panda is looking to usher in more reforms, remove barriers to entry, and steadfastly ease the compliance burden to catapult the industry to even greater heights. Don’t be surprised if the insurance industry scales to $500 billion Gross Written Premium (GWP) by 2027, notching a 34 per cent CAGR from the current $115 billion, if the recent reform tempo is maintained.

INSURANCE AWARENESS
Friday 14 October, 2022
Sum Insured (SI) Vs. Sum Assured (SA) Customers may have come across the terms “Sum Assured” (SA) or “Sum Insured” (SI) in their policies. Mostly in all life insurance policies and in Personal Accident (PA) covers, the term SA is used to represent the maximum insured amount the insurance company has covered under such policies, whereas in the case of majority of the policies where properties and liabilities are covered, the term SI is used. The term “Sum Insured” has an underlying principle “indemnity” and indemnifying the insured means restoring the insured to the same financial position as before the event that gave rise to the claim. So, settlement of claims under indemnity-based insurances is a bit complicated as compared to Sum Assured claims which are also known as “benefit based” insurances.

The Premium Score Board October 2022
Friday 14 October, 2022
The non-life insurance industry comprises of 24 multiline insurers, 5 Stand Alone Health Insurers (SAHI) and two specialised insurers, namely, Agriculture Insurance Co of India Ltd and ECGC Limited, thus totalling up to 31 general insurers. For the period April to September 2022. These companies together have logged an underwriting premium income of about Rs. 1,25,196 crores, showing a growth of around 15.31%. Out of this, the multiline insurers (general insurers) have contributed premium income of Rs. 1,04,672.46 crores with an accretion of 15.03%. SAHI have contributed a premium of Rs. 11,661.97 crores, showing an accretion of 26.73% and specialised insurers have underwritten premium of Rs. 8911.48 crores with an accretion of 5.18% over the corresponding previous financial year period.

Marine insurance adapting to a world in transition says IUMI President
Monday 19 September, 2022
Opening this year’s IUMI (International Union of Marine Insurance) annual conference in Chi-cago, President Richard Turner introduced “Adapting to a World in Transition” as this year’s conference theme, highlighting the impact of climate, asset, macroeconomic and geopolitical changes on marine insurers, the clients they support and IUMI itself.

Exceeding customer expectations
Friday 14 October, 2022
In 2017 Lemonade, an Insurtech company reported a claim handling world record. The insurer reported a claim settlement speed record – 3 seconds and no paperwork. According to the insurer, a policyholder submitted a theft claim for a $979 Canada Goose Langford Parka on Dec 23, 2016. Within seconds, AI Jim, Lemonade’s artificial intelligence claims bot, reviewed the claim, cross referenced it with the policy, ran 18 anti-fraud algorithms on it, approved it and sent wiring instructions to the bank, informing the policyholder the claim was paid at replacement cost and closed.

Human Resource Management and Post pandemic work culture Shailendra Sinha
Friday 14 October, 2022
Every organization, big or small uses a battery of Capital to make the business work. The capital includes cash, valuables, or goods to generate income for the business. Whatever be the business, the one thing in common is the involvement of people who make their capital work. Human Resource Management is the process of following events

Contribution of general insurance industry to the nation and society
Friday 14 October, 2022
The main function of the insurance is to provide protection against the probable chances of loss. In its social responsibility and providing relief in sufferings it is different from any other enterprise which are solely motivated by maximising profit. It is primarily business of mitigating suffering due to unfortunate events. Insurance today is inseparable part of social welfare in any country.

Health Insurance Shifting Consumer Perception From Fear Towards Wellness In India
Tuesday 12 July, 2022
Health insurance provides the dual benefit of financial protection, while also acting as a safeguard against medical debt-induced poverty. Now, the advent of digital tools, machine learning, Blockchain, and the convergence around IoT and cloud-based wellness devices and programmes will open more avenues towards providing superior value to customers.

IRDAI constitutes two task forces on issues of reinsurance support
Monday 11 July, 2022
The regulator has formed two task forces to study issues the non-life insurance and life insurance industries face in reinsurance support. The two have to give reports in three weeks, said IRDAI. Reinsurance support refers to insurance companies transferring a part of the risk they underwrite to other firms. The task force for the non-life insurance industry has nine members and it will be headed by Bhargav Dasgupta, MD&CEO, ICICI Lombard General Insurance

Motor own damage cover IRDAI permits sophisticated add-ons
Thursday 07 July, 2022
Now your way of driving and use of vehicles can determine the nature of your own damage motor insurance. The Insur-ance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has permitted the general insurers to introduce sophisticat-ed technology enabled add-ons to the Own Damage (OD) cover.

Seat belt helmet traffic rules Rules of personal accident insurance
Friday 09 September, 2022
Businessman Cyrus Mistry’s death in a car crash on September 4 has brought attention to personal accident (PA) insurance. A standalone personal plan covers against the financial impact of an accident. "Personal accident insurance provides coverage against accidents leading to bodily injuries, disability (partial or complete) or accidental death," says Naval Goel, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of PolicyX.com.

Gujarat Recover amount from erring insurance officers
Friday 02 September, 2022
AHMEDABAD: Lashing out at insurance companies for arbitrary and illogical rejection of Covid-19 claims despite the policy holder having a special insurance cover, the Gandhinagar District Consumer Redressal Commission said that the amount in such cases should be recovered from the erring officers of the companies. The commission made the remark in a case involving one Pravinaben Patel, a resident of Sector 25, who had a special Corona Rakshak Policy of Rs 2.50 lakh from IFFCO Tokio General Insurance Co Ltd.

IRDAI to build comprehensive portal for resolving policyholders complaints
Friday 02 September, 2022
Proposed new portal to be ready by year end Insurance regulator IRDAI is building a comprehensive portal for complaints redressal of policyholders. This portal is ex-pected to be ready by end of December this year, said Bejon Kumar Misra, Consumer Policy Expert and Member of Advisory Committee, IRDAI, on Friday. The portal will address a big pain point of policyholders in not being able to upload. — due to existing technology glitch-es—their documents online to support their complaints and grievances against insurers.

Non-life insurers not keen on paying obligatory cession to GIC Re
Monday 01 August, 2022
There is growing clamour among non-life insurers that the business they cede to state-owned reinsurer General Insurance Corporation (GIC Re) of India mandatorily must come down or be done away with as the commission paid by the reinsurer does not reflect the industry cost structure. While no formal proposal has been drafted by industry players through the General Insurance Council, but in discussions with the regulator, this issue has cropped up, resulting in the regulator forming a task force.

Be more consumer-centric: IRDAI to insurers
Tuesday 30 August, 2022
High priced products leaving health insurance to be unaffordable to several sections of society: Chairman Debasish Panda The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) will recommend to the government that neces-sary statutory changes should be brought so as to allow health insurance providers to offer value-added services to cus-tomers, its Chairman Debasish Panda said on Tuesday.

IRDAI extends Use and File for insurance products for agriculture and allied activities
Thursday 14 July, 2022
Indian insurance regulator has extended the ambit of 'Use and File' procedure to products covering agriculture and allied activities, a press release issued by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) said on Thursday. The move is aimed at improving ease of doing business and protecting the interst of those who are involved in agricultiral or allied activities.

IRDAI to revamp grievance redressal mechanism, plans to call it Bima Bharosa
Sunday 07 August, 2022
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) is all set to revamp the grievance redressal mechanism and call it Bima Bharosa, reported PTI citing sources. The revamp will include an option of filing complaints in regional languages. This can be attributed to making the process of complaint redressal more efficient. The Integrated Grievance Redressal System (IGMS), launched in 2011, is being upgraded to make it more convenient for customers. It is to be renamed as Bima Bharosa.

Motor own damage cover: IRDAI permits sophisticated add-ons
Thursday 07 July, 2022
Now your way of driving and use of vehicles can determine the nature of your own damage motor insurance. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has permitted the general insurers to introduce sophisticated technology enabled add-ons to the Own Damage (OD) cover.

IRDAI constitutes two task forces on issues of reinsurance support
Monday 11 July, 2022
The regulator has formed two task forces to study issues the non-life insurance and life insurance industries face in rein-surance support. The two have to give reports in three weeks, said IRDAI.

Health Insurance: Shifting Consumer Perception From Fear Towards Wellness In India
Tuesday 12 July, 2022
Health insurance provides the dual benefit of financial protection, while also acting as a safeguard against medical debt-induced poverty. Now, the advent of digital tools, machine learning, Blockchain, and the convergence around IoT and cloud-based wellness devices and programmes will open more avenues towards providing superior value to customers

General insurers urge IRDAI for mandatory KYC of customers
Tuesday 05 July, 2022
At present, sharing KCY details is voluntary while purchasing a general insurance product Non-life insurers have requested the insurance regulator IRDAI to permit verifying the contact details of policyholders. This would enable them to get in touch with customers during an emergency and help them with sales. General insurers have pointed out that for any financial transaction such as mutual funds or bank account opening, KYC is needed.

No Decision on Mandatory Disclosure of Insurance Policy Commissions IRDAI
Friday 15 July, 2022
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) on Friday said it has not taken any decision on disclosing the commission paid to insurance intermediaries on the policy document. In a statement, IRDAI clarified that it has not taken any decision on this matter.

IRDAI cuts solvency margins for crop insurers
Thursday 14 July, 2022
In a move that can augur well for crop insurance, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has reduced the solvency margin requirement for insurers doing crop business. This will unlock ₹1,400 crore of funds for insurers to underwrite business.

The Premium Score Board
Friday 12 August, 2022
The Non-Life(General) Insurance sector comprises of, as on date, 4 Public Sector, 20 Private Sector Multi-line Insurers, 5 Stand Alone Health Insurance companies and 2 specialized insurance companies viz. AICL and ECGC. They are all direct insurance companies, meaning that they transact insurance directly with the policyholders like you and me.

What is Non-Life Insurance?
Friday 12 August, 2022
Non-life insurance covers property, businesses and individuals andis also known as general insurance in India. In some markets this type of insurance is known as Property and Casualty (P&C) insurance. Unlike life insurance which covers lives for assured benefits, non-life insurance provides coverage for damages on indemnity basis. It protects insured monetarily by providing money in the event of an accidental loss. Examplesof non-life insurance are Fire, Marine, Motor, Health insurance, home, factory, shop, travel and liability insurance etc.

General Insurance Council to create fraudulent claims data bank
Wednesday 13 July, 2016
With most of the regulatory issues relating to the non-life insurance industry ironed out, the General Insurance Council of India is now into development of data bank of fraudulent claims, clearing house and standardisation of policy wordings for commercial policies, said a top official.

General insurers premium collection hits Rs 96400 crore in FY16
Sunday 17 April, 2016
General insurance industry has missed the ambitious target of crossing the Rs 1 lakh-crore mark in premium collection by a small margin at Rs 96,401 crore, up almost 14 per cent in the just concluded fiscal.

R Chandrasekaran General Insurance Council Fintelekt the Indian Insurance Awards 2015
Wednesday 24 February, 2016
R Chandrasekaran, Secretary General, General Insurance Council, speaking at the 5th edition of the Indian Insurance Awards held on June 26, 2015 in Mumbai.

IRDA Circular on Payment of dues to policy holders and disclosure of unclaimed amount
Thursday 28 August, 2014
On 14th August 2014 IRDA has issued circular on payment of dues to policy holders & disclosure of unclaimed amount thereof.

Launch of Insurance Policy Issuance through CSCs
Thursday 28 August, 2014
IRDA Chairman inaugurated the “Launch of Insurance Policy Issuance through Common Service Centres (CSCs) set-up under National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) of Government of India” at a meeting of Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) held on 6.8.2014 at LIC ZONAL Training Centre, Hyderabad.”

Market surveys by Interns on customer perception about health insurance
Thursday 28 August, 2014
During the summer months of May and June 2014, the Council arranged for conducting market surveys by Questionnaire Method on two most important insurance products viz. (a) Customer Perception about Health Insurance and (b) Road Map for Personal Accident Insurance, through MBA Student-Interns,

IRDA sets up panel for sub-broking
Wednesday 05 February, 2014
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) has set up a committee to consider sub-broking in insurance. A total of 11 members with representatives from the life insurance council, the general insurance council and Irda have been made part of the committee.

Government paid private insurer crores in premium for ghost beneficiaries
Monday 02 September, 2013
The discovery of major irregularities in the delivery of Centrally sponsored insurance and health schemes for farmers and artisans by ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd. suggests poor supervision of key welfare programmes intended for the rural poor is leading to the ‘direct cash transfer’ of money from the exchequer to private insurance companies.

Irda proposes to tighten norms for web aggregators
Thursday 22 August, 2013
Web aggregators (websites that compile and provide information on policies of various insurance companies) are up for tighter regulatory norms.

No Catastrophe Insurance Cover yet
Thursday 25 June, 2015
In the wake of the natural disaster in Uttarakhand, the proposal for 'catastrophe insurance' is in spotlight. Early this year, non-life insurance companies had presented a concept paper on catastrophe insurance to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

Uttarakhand floods: insurance claims may exceed Rs.3,500 crore
Tuesday 25 June, 2013
India’s insurance regulator has asked life and general insurers to assess the possible claims arising out of the devastation caused by floods in Uttarakhand at the earliest, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter. They feared that the total claims could exceed the record Rs.3,500 crore mark that the insurance industry faced in 2005 because of floods in Mumbai.

Keynote address by Shri R. Chandrasekaran, Secretary-General, GI Council on Social Marketing
Friday 31 May, 2013
Seminar on Social Marketing -- Ideation to implementation held on 30th & 31st May, 2013.

False claims, a big worry for health insurers
Monday 20 May, 2013
The high incidence of fraudulent claims is becoming a big concern for the health insurers as it leads to huge losses. About a quarter of the health insurance payout goes towards fraudulent claims, if one goes by the industry version.

Insurers, Irda to launch awareness campaign
Monday 18 March, 2013
In a bid to create awareness for insurance needs and on insurance products for health, motor, home and travel insurance, the General Insurance Council (GIC) with support from Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) is set to start its awareness campaign on television, newspaper and other media channels with a total budgeted spend of Rs 16 crore.

Awareness campaign on non-life insurance penetration launched
Thursday 18 April, 2013
Finance Minister P Chidambaram today asked the insurance industry to increase their penetration, so as to rid the country and the economy of the tag of the 'most under insured country' of the world.

Focus on smaller towns, Chidambaram tells insurance sector
Tuesday 16 April, 2013
As India remains among the most under-insured countries in the world, the Finance Minister P Chidambaram today asked the general insurance industry to spread awareness about the need for risk cover in smaller towns across the country.

IRDA and General Insurance Council to launch consumer awareness campaign
Sunday 14 April, 2013
Cafemutual

FM asks IRDA to increase insurance density
Saturday 13 April, 2013
Finance minister P Chidambaram on Friday urged the insurance regulator to focus more on its developmental role to increase the insurance penetration in the country, which is well below its need and potential.

FM asks insurance sector to focus on smaller towns
Saturday 13 April, 2013
FM asks insurance sector to focus on smaller towns

How to build a strong health insurance plan
Friday 02 December, 2022
Since childhood we have learned that food, shelter, and clothing are the three necessities of life; unfortunately, nobody spoke about insurance, and no one perceives insurance as a priority

P&I clubs set $80m excess war risk cover limit for Russia
Sunday 12 February, 2023
Protection and Indemnity insurers have set a new excess war risk sub-limit for ships trading to areas affected by Russia’s war with Ukraine.

To stay sustainable: the insurance industry needs an urgent paradigm shift
Saturday 11 February, 2023
As global temperatures keep rising above the pre-industrial times, the stability that we took for granted is in a state of flux and headed for irreversible consequences. This is thanks to the over-exploitation of Nature - resulting in Climate Change together with biodiversity loss and pollution. Munich Re sees climate change and La Niña as two of the drivers for a $120 billion annual disaster insured loss for 2022. $100 billion or more is the “new normal” for the global insurance industry’s annual natural disaster loss total.

Risk based capital in Non-life Insurance
Monday 13 February, 2023
The services sector occupying lion's share of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is one indicator of a nation's economic development. The sector has a huge impact on the lives of the country's population. The financial health of the organisations in this sector is now almost synonymous with the financial health of the country. In view of the risk profile of the financial sector, in advanced countries, the RBC has emerged as a key concept to guard the health of this sector, prompting similar initiatives in other emerging markets. It can be equally effective and rewarding in all other sectors/segments of the economy. Today the term surprisingly carries a mystic aura around it. This article is an attempt to present to the reader a preliminary understanding of RBC and some dimensions associated with its implementation / adoption.

Contract certainty in in insurance policy wordings
Friday 10 February, 2023
Insurance industry is undergoing sweeping reforms in India, thanks to the initiatives introduced and encouraged by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI). They are substantial and far-reaching in nature. One of the areas where reforms are expected to have visibility and significant influence is giving freedom to insurers to develop their own insurance policy wordings which hitherto were largely dictated by erstwhile tariffs, market agreements and reinsurer wordings etc. Free policy wording may be a matter of celebration for free-wording absolutists. While it is a welcome development, left handled casually or negligently, it may create trust deficit among insurance customers when predictability is sacrificed for the alluring objective of free-wording. If the policy language is ambiguous and prone to different interpretations, it may also result in avoidable and costly litigation in the area of claims settlement and unintended outcomes.

The Premium Score Board – February 2023
Tuesday 14 February, 2023
At the end of January 2023, the general insurance industry has grown by 16.58% touching a Gross Direct Premium of Rs. 212720 crores. The health insurance business growth at 24% and Motor insurance at 16% are the highest contributors to this growth.

Mobile Phone Insurance in India
Tuesday 14 February, 2023
Knowing that a smartphone in your palm is the next best thing to a computer, the modern generation places heavy emphasis on its technological capabilities. These are the advantages of buying a mobile insurance policy

IUMI Spring Session at Hamburg and representation of Indian market at IUMI
Wednesday 12 April, 2023
Attending IUMI’s spring session was a wonderful experience. A superb workshop, with lots of important maritime and global marine insurance issues were discussed and deliberated during the committee discussions amongst the members

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