Life insurers register 15% YoY jump in new business premium income at Rs 24,916 crore in October – check details here

Life Insurance October 2022 data: India's life insurance companies' new business premium income surged by 15.3 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 24,916.58 crore in October 2022, according to the Life Insurance Council data. While the premium income has declined by over 31 per cent when compared month-on-month basis.

The YoY growth can primarily be attributed to group single premiums and more specifically to Life Insurance Corporation, while growth in individual premiums at the private players too supported the growth, rating agency CareEdge said in its report.

Similarly, the year-to-date FY23 first-year premium numbers grew by 34.7 per cent against the 4.1 per cent growth reported in the same period last year. This can also be attributed to rise in group single premiums, and a low base, which saw subdued levels due to the pandemic-led lockdowns.

LIC -- the only state-owned and the largest life insurer in the country -- recorded 18 per cent rise in its new business premium at Rs 15,920.13 crore during the month, as against Rs 13,500.78 crore a year ago.

LIC continues to dominate the single premium sub-segment, especially the group business, while the private sector has a larger share in the non-single sub-segment mainly individual premiums.

The rest 23 players in the private sector witnessed their combined new business premium increasing by 11 per cent to Rs 8,996.45 crore, as against Rs 8,105.46 crore in October 2021.

On a cumulative basis, all 24 players registered a 35 per cent increase in new business premium income during April-October period of 2022-23 at Rs 2,06,893.51 crore as against Rs 1,53,588.14 crore in the same period of 2021-22, as per the data.

“Insurance demand is positively correlated with economic growth and grows at a multiple to the GDP. The top line of life insurers is anticipated to remain healthy for FY23 as it would be the first full year without any Covid-related restrictions,” CareEdge Rating said in its note.

The growth would be driven by a supportive regulatory landscape – launch of the Bima Sugan portal, strong demand for annuity and protection plans along with increased persistency levels, it added.

Other factors include an intense push to increase insurance coverage, especially in the rural populace, product innovations/customisation, and distribution channels being coupled with digitalized infrastructure for easier user interaction, the rating agency said, adding that the overall outlook is expected to be positive in the medium term.

With PTI Inputs