IRDAI data shows that the number of individual agents in the life insurance industry was 24.50 lakh as on March 2021. Considering 1.35 billion population, a rough calculation shows that India has one agent for every 550 people.
Overall, the life insurance industry has added a net of 1.80 lakh new agents in 2020-2021, resulting in 8% jump in the total agent count to 24.5 lakh, according to IRDAI's annual report 2020-2021.
In FY 2020-21, LIC has seen its agent count jumping 12% to 13.50 lakh from 12 lakh at the end of 2019-2020. The growth in agent count was subdued in case of private life insurers as their agent count went up by only 3%. They together added a net of 31,600 new agents.
The muted growth in private life insurers' agent count is a result of high termination rate. For every 10 new additions, almost 9 existing agents have left private insurers in the last financial year.
Overall, there are now 24.50 lakh agents in the life insurance industry. The count is 8% higher from the total figure at the end of March 2020. Of the aggregate, 27% or 6.6 lakh agents are female.
Agent count of private general insurers rises 62%
In general insurance, the agent count of private insurers has risen 62% to 3.60 lakh in 2020-2021. Public insurers have witnessed their agent count declining 1% to 2.90 lakh.
Standalone health insurers (SAHI) have empanelled almost 2 lakh new agents and seen 7,000 terminations, resulting in a net 13% increase in agent count to 7.70 lakh.
Overall, general and SAHI insurers added a net of 2.20 lakh new agents in 2020-2021.
