Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the growing demand for health cover has come as a booster shot for non-life insurers as they reported a 5.20% increase in gross direct premium for 2020-21.
Compliance with general insurers (all of which also carry health insurance); Standalone health insurer; Two specific insurers of PSUs (ECGC and Agriculture Insurance Company) in the non-life segment reported gross direct premium of ₹ 1,98,734.68 crore. For 2019-20, it stood at ₹ 9,88,916.61 crore.
Flash figures (provisional and informal), released on Tuesday by insurance regulator IRDAI, show 8,69,840.05 crore (64 1,8,328.20 crore), lowering the gross direct premium of general insurers (25 companies) to 3.35%. These companies account for over 85% of the non-life market.
In March, a busy month for insurance companies, premium rose 14.59% to 15,683.39 crore (6, 13,685.87 crore) due to customer rush to benefit from the tax breaks available on certain covers.
Seven stand-alone private health insurers recorded gross direct premiums of .04 15,720.04 crores or 11.08% higher than the 14,151.70 crores in the previous financial year. In March, this growth increased by 41% to .05 2,185.05 crore (the 1,545.83 crore).
While the segment-wise business figures for non-life insurers for the full fiscal year are yet to be released, the health premium increased by 13.06% in February to 52,886.54 crore (₹ 46,777.16 crore) in the number of general and standalone health insurers. Their performance should be seen as having no revision in motor third party tariffs, slowing automobile sales as well as weak economic sentiment.
As of February, motor insurance premium, their mainstay, was 3.83% lower at ₹ 63,268.32 crore. Out of this, third party premium of 7 39,067.87 crore was lower by 4.12%.
Company wise, all five standalone health insurers were in positive territory with Aditya Birla Health Insurance Company posting a 49.15% increase in total direct premium with ₹ 1,300.64 crore.
Max Bupa reported 40.86% growth in ₹ 1,750.78 crore, while Segment Leader, Star Health & Allied Insurance Company, reported 36.24% growth with 9,353.39 crore. Manipalakigna Health Insurance Company C 755.49 crore and Care Health Insurance ign 2,559.75 crore registered an increase of 31.12% and 7.15% respectively. (Reliance Health Insurance portfolio was taken over by Reliance General Insurance. HDFC ERGO Health Insurance was merged with HDFC ERGO General).
With respect to general insurance companies, the gross direct premium of 17 companies was higher as compared to the previous financial year, for two of which the change was less than 1%. The remaining eight saw a decline. Of the four public sector general insurers, the market leader New India Assurance Company was the only one whose gross direct premium was reduced by 6.22% to 28,481.65 crore.
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