At a national conference on Financial Inclusion organised by Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) in association with Ernst and Young, yesterday, the idea of an ‘everything product’ to take care of multi risks for rural public was floated.
“This is an idea that we have presented before the regulator to increase the rural penetration. IRDA chairman has also expressed his interest in this product and has told Life Insurance Council to go through the product details,” said Dr Nandagopal, MD and CEO, IndiaFirst Life Insurance, who was present at the event.
The ‘everything product’ is meant to comprehensively cover various risks of a typical household, with a single premium. The regulator has also suggested three pricing options for the product to be chosen by the insured, depending upon coverage of short-term or long-term risks.
The conference also highlighted the fact that claims ratio from rural customers was very low compared to their urban peers. Hari Narayan asked the insurance companies to evolve a strategy to address the issue. He also suggested insurers to redesign their product and adopt the lead bank concept and form a lead insurer in different regions to ensure healthier performance.