Getting intermediary compensation right

Published in Mint on 17 February, 2016, Written by Kapil Mehta Earlier this year, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) issued an exposure draft on compensation for insurance intermediaries such as agents and brokers. The number of industry stakeholders who have responded to the draft is among the highest ever. Why? Because […]

Read More

More payment for distributors sought

Published in Mint on Jan 14 2016 The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) came out with a draft circular on the payment of commission to insurance agents and intermediaries on Wednesday. The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Act, 2015, gives powers to Irdai to decide remuneration structure for distributors. The draft also specified rewards […]

Read More

Stopping premiums can reduce life cover

Published in Mint on Dec 02 2015 The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) reiterated recently that when a policy is surrendered or discontinued, the insurer will have to follow the rules stipulated by linked and non-linked product regulations that came out in 2013. The regulator said so in a notification that came […]

Read More

Insurance gets a new distribution avenue

Published in Mint on Oct 28 2015 To increase the distribution footprint of the insurance industry, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has allowed a new type of distributor, called the point of sale (PoS) person. According to Irdai, this step is a part of its developmental agenda and it hopes that […]

Read More

New buyers of health plans may pay more

Published in Mint on May 28 2015 Most of us tend to buy health insurance policies later than sooner, when chances of facing health related issues are higher. So, to encourage more younger people to buy health insurance, an expert committee on health insurance has recommended that the premiums reflect risk at the age of […]

Read More

How the world looks at insurance

Published in Mint on 8 April 2015, Written by Kapil Mehta I am glad March is over. Financial year-end is hectic for insurance. People buy life and health insurance to claim their income tax benefits under sections 80C, 80D and other such. Surprisingly, companies also buy most of their insurance in this month. There is […]

Read More

Banks may sell for more than one insurer

Published in Mint on April 02 2015 Paving the way for an open architecture in insurance distribution, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), has issued draft guidelines on corporate agents. Corporate agents are entities such as banks that solicit insurance policies for insurers. Agents are individuals doing the same job. According to […]

Read More

Look at costs when index-linked insurance products are revived

Published in Livemint The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) stated in a circular last week the formation of a working group to examine various aspects of index-linked insurance products (Ilips) that may be offered by life insurers. Ilips are not new in life insurance companies’ arsenal. Before 2013—when the regulator banned the […]

Read More

Does regulator allows partial settlement of maturity payouts for all Ulips

Published in LiveMint. Addressing the operational constraints arising out of the country-wide lockdown and the market volatility due to COVID-19, the insurance regulator has allowed life insurers to offer settlement options in accordance with Regulation 25 of IRDA (linked insurance products) Regulation, 2013 for matured Ulips whose fund value is to be paid in lumpsum. […]

Read More