IRDA has directed insurers to appoint new agents for servicing orphaned policies.
With large scale changes sweeping the insurance industry, many agents have quit the industry. Over 3 lakh agents are said to have left the industry. In the bargain, many policyholders were orphaned of which many discontinued premium payments.
Taking note, IRDA has directed insurers to appoint new agent for servicing such (orphaned) policies,in a recent draft. The policies allotted to the new agent shall not be counted for persistency and he will receive the full commission, according to the original policy document.
The draft states, “It is important and in the interest of such policyholders to provide for a system where they are not denied the benefit of having an agent to look after their policy service issues.”
The policyholders willalso be notified the particulars of the ‘allottee agent’. The draft illustrates that insurers should put in place procedures for capturing the details of the policy-allotted agents, in order to ensure that its objectives are met.
Insurers will also have to ensure that the ‘allottee agents’ render the same service standards followed by the erstwhile agents.
“IRDA has made a move in the right direction; it is a win-win situation for both the policyholder and us. We only have to take care of the fact that new agents deliver proper service to these policyholders,” said a top official from Bajaj Allianz.