The Rs.39 lakh crore life insurance industry having a total 22.78 lakh individual agents has 6.15 lakh women agents (27%) as on March 2020, shows IRDAI annual report.
The life insurance industry has witnessed 2% growth in the number of women agents in one year from 6.03 lakh in March 2019.
Among life insurers, LIC India accounts for 45% of women agents in the life insurance industry. LIC alone has 2.78 lakh women agents while 3.38 lakh women agents were engaged with private life insurers as on March 2020.
“Out of the total 22.78 lakh individual agents of life insurance industry, male agents form 73% and female individual agents are 27%. For LIC, the proportion of male and female individual agents is at 77% and 23%, respectively. In case of private sector insurers, the male female proportion is 68:32, respectively,” said IRDAI.
Meanwhile, the general insurance industry has 21% women agents as on March 2020. Out of the total 5.15 lakh agents in the general insurance industry, 1.08 lakh were women.
The proportion of women agents in public general insurance companies was 18% compared to 25% in private non-life insurers.
R.M. Vishakha, MD and CEO of IndiaFirst Life Insurance said that women possess strong negotiating and influencing skills. “Despite forming almost 50% of the country’s total population, very few women are insured with life insurance policies. I believe women agents bring a level of empathy and understanding needed to cater to women clients. Keeping this in mind, the industry definitely needs more women agents to bring in more women clients in the life insurance industry,” she said.
|
Gender wise distributors with life insurers (2019-20) |
|||
|
Insurer |
Male |
Female |
Total |
|
LIC |
9,31,050 |
2,77,776 |
12,08,826 |
|
Private sector |
7,31,806 |
3,37,833 |
10,69,639 |
|
Total |
16,62,856 |
6,15,609 |
22,78,465 |
|
Gender wise distributors with general insurers (2019-20) |
|||
|
Insurer |
Male |
Female |
Total |
|
Public sector |
1,68,261 |
54,880 |
2.23,141 |
|
Private sector |
2,39,119 |
53,237 |
2,92,356 |
|
Total |
4,07,380 |
1,08,117 |
5,15,497 |
