Despite pandemic, life insurance industry adds 1.77 lakh agents in FY 2021

The financial year 2020-21 ended on a positive note for the life insurance industry in terms of addition of new agents.

Despite the pandemic hit year, the life insurance industry added 1.77 lakh new life insurance agents, shows the data released by Life Insurance Council, a trade body of the life insurance companies.

Compared to the preceding financial year, the industry has witnessed double growth in terms of addition of new agents. In FY 2019-20, the life insurance companies added 83,700 new agents.

Overall, there are 25 lakh life insurance agents in the country as on March 2021. The total number of agents increased by 8% from 23 lakh in March 2020.

Of the total new agent count of 1.77 lakh, the industry behemoth LIC has added 1.45 lakh agents (82%) while private insurance companies saw addition of 31,600 agents (18%).

Experts attribute this to online recruitment of agents. Many large insurers have shifted to having an agency channel that’s almost 100% digital - from their recruitment to selling to customers to servicing them, all happens via digital modes.

Among private players, SBI life has added 39,700 life insurance agents in the industry followed by Tata AIA Life with 19,400 agents and Max Life with 9,200 agents in FY21.

Meanwhile, ICICI Prudential Life and Kotak Mahindra Life have seen attrition of their agents.

As on March 2021, SBI life, ICICI Prudential Life and HDFC Life were the top three private insurance players with the highest number of agents.

Agent count as on March 2021