Insurers to increase term policy rates for 2nd time in FY22

Top private life insurers are revising their term insurance rates by the fourth quarter. According to industry officials, reinsurers have taken a tough stance with the new Omicron variant adding to the uncertainty.

This is the second round of price increases in the current fiscal that the life insurance industry is witnessing. According to distributors, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance and HDFC Life Insurance have sounded them off about the likelihood of an upward revision in the fourth quarter.

HDFC Life Insurance chief financial officer Niraj Shah said protection prices in India are a lot lower than in some of the developed countries with superior healthcare facilities and higher life expectancy. “Historical increases in India have been lower than inflation growth. We should expect pricing and underwriting norms to evolve in line with expanding geographical and demographic coverage over time,” said Shah.

IndiaFirst Life Insurance MD & CEO R M Vishakha said, “Global reinsurers follow business considerations in revising their rates. Domestic insurers are dependent on their support for providing cover and have to increase rates whenever reinsurance rates are revised.”

HDFC Life is currently engaging with reinsurers to refine underwriting practices, deploy new technologies such as deep-learning underwriting models and address the protection opportunity through our group platform (Credit Life) apart from the individual business, which will distribute risks more evenly.