Insurance penetration in India

Insurance penetration in India

News: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) in India is working on an all-in-one policy plan to address the low insurance penetration in India.

What is IRDAI?
 The IRDAI was founded 199 with its HQ at Hyderabad is a statutory body (under the IRDA Act 1999) and is under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Finance and is tasked with regulating and licensing the insurance and
re-insurance industries in India.
 Composition of authority - It is a ten-member team consisting of (a) a Chairman, (b) five whole-time members and (c) four part-time members. All are appointed by Central Government.

What is the all-in-one Policy plan?
 The plan looks to offer an affordable bundled insurance product that covers health, life, property, and accident risks.
 Bima Sugam - The portal will integrate insurers and distributors, providing customers with a one-stop shop for purchasing insurance policies and managing service requests and claim settlements. It will also be integrated with digitized birth and death registries
 Bima Vistar - It will be bundled risk cover product, which offers defined benefits for each risk and aims to provide faster claim payouts without the need for surveyors.
 Bima Vaahaks - The third component of the plan involves deploying a women-centric workforce called Bima Vaahaks (carriers) in each Gram Sabha (village council) to promote the benefits of insurance products.

What will be the impact of new plan?
 It will provide citizens with an affordable single policy that covers health, life, property and accident
 Settling claims within a short timeframe
 It will allow policyholders to easily access their policies and submit death certificates, enabling quick processing and transfer of funds.

What are other social security measures taken up or envisioned by Government/IRDAI?
 To achieve the goal of providing insurance coverage for all citizens by 2047, the IRDA plans to establish State-level insurance committees and involve State governments in formulating district-level insurance plans.
 Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana – It provides insurance against accidental death and disability at affordable rates.
 Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana – It provides Life insurance at affordable rates.
 Atal Pension Yojana – Provides pension to unorganized workers in the society.