The type of insurance everyone needs to know about.
In case you are always worried about different aspects of life, and there are always thoughts that you should get insurance for yourself. But, there is no doubt it is a difficult decision especially when you are not aware of the different insurance policies and types. Whenever you are going for an insurance policy you should first get proper research done in this regard. Let us explain a few types of insurance in this piece of writing that it is easy for you to choose and make a decision. The types of insurance are as follows:
General Insurance:
In general insurance, one can include property insurance, any other form of insurance along with liability insurance. Whereas the Fire and Marine insurance are the ones that fall in the category of Property insurance. There are other types of insurance that you can get such as Motor, Theft, and Machine insurances are dealt with under the umbrella of liability insurance to an extent. If we talk about the strictest form of liability insurance then it is the fidelity insurance, in case of liability insurance, the insurer pays on the behalf of the insured, the insured is compensated whenever there is a liability on him such as payment to a third party.
Liability Insurance:
As we have mentioned above that the liability insurance is the general insurance, where you have this guarantee that the insurer will be paying the damages or compensation on your behalf to a third party, in case you have cause any damage to a property, loss, injury or death. There are some other types of insurance that fall under this category and which are fidelity insurance, machine insurance, and automobile insurance.&
Social Insurance:
This is one of the insurance policies that are specially designed for providing protection to the weaker sections of the society, the ones who are not able to pay the premium amounts for the adequate insurance policies, pension plans, any other benefits such as the disability, unemployment benefits.&
Guarantee Insurance:
This type of insurance policy covers the loss that takes place due to dishonesty, disloyalty, and disappearance of the second party or of the employees. The party who is involved in this type of insurance must be the party to a contract. The failure of a party can cause loss to the first party. This type of insurance can be explained with the help of an illustration. Let’s take an example of export insurance, in case of such insurance the insurer will be compensating you for the loss at the failure of importers, for instance, they failed to pay the amount of debt.
Top Life Insurance Companies in India 2020
By buying a life insurance policy, the insurance company promises you to pay the sum assured as claim amount, in the event of the death of the insured within the policy term or at the maturity of the policy (whichever occurs earlier). For life insurance policies that offer pure risk cover such as term insurance plan, your family will receive the life cover amount. For other life insurance policies like an endowment, money back, lips, etc., you will receive the life cover amount or maturity benefit, depends on the earlier occurrence of the event.
When it comes to the settlement of death claims, the members of your family or nominee will have to approach the insurance company and intimate them about your death and provide them the duly filled death claim form. In order to ensure smooth and quick claims settlement, you need to check the Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) of life insurance companies.
Top 10 Life Insurance Companies in 2020
The top life insurance companies mentioned below are based on the claim settlement ratio of the respective companies.
1. Max Life Insurance
Max Life Insurance is a joint venture of Max financial services Ltd. and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co. Ltd. Max Life Insurance Company offers comprehensive life insurance solutions to meet the long-term savings and protection to over 30 Lakh customers. It has a diversified distribution model, including agents, advisors, bancassurance, and other allied partners. Max Life has the highest claim settlement ratio of 98.74% in FY 2018-19.
2. Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)
Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) is the only public sector life insurance company offering a variety of life insurance products such as insurance plans, pension plans, unit-linked plans, special plans, and group schemes. LIC has secured over 250 million lives with its varying life insurance solutions. It has a claim settlement ratio of 97.79% in FY 2018-19.
3. Tata AIA Life
Tata AIA Life Insurance Company is a joint venture of Tata Group and AIA Group Ltd. The company commenced its insurance business in the year 2001 and since then, it is offering life insurance products such as protection, savings, and wealth solutions to individuals and corporate customers. Tata AIA has a wide distribution channel including agents, brokers, bancassurance, and direct channels. Tata AIA Life has a claim settlement ratio of 99.07% in FY 2018-19.
4. ICICI Prudential Life
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company is a joint venture between ICICI Bank and Prudential plc. ICICI Bank has 74% stakeholding and Prudential Plc holds a 26% stake in the joint venture. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance offers a wide range of products such as terms, health, ULIP, savings, and retirement plans to cater to the insurance needs of the customers. ICICI Prudential Life has a claim settlement ratio of 98.58% in FY 2018-19.
5. HDFC Life
HDFC Life Insurance Company is a result of a joint venture between Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd and Standard Life plc. HDFC ltd owns 70.65% shareholding and the remaining 26% of shares are held by Standard Life. HDFC Life offers a range of life insurance products including term insurance, health cover, pension, child plans, saving, and investment plans. HDFC Life has a claim settlement ratio of 99.04% in FY 2018-19.
6. Bharti AXA Life
Bharti AXA Life Insurance is a joint venture between Bharti Group (India’s leading business group) and AXA Group (leader in insurance, investment & other financial services). Bharti holds 51% shareholding and AXA owns a 49% stake. Bharti AXA Life offers an innovative range of insurance products including protection plans, health, savings, investment plans, and many others. Bharti AXA Life has a claim settlement ratio of 97.28% in FY 2018-19.
7. Exide Life
Exide Life Insurance Company started the insurance business in the year 2001-02. The company is completely owned by Exide Industries Limited. Exide Life has multiple channels to distribute its insurance products via agents, brokers, bancassurance, direct channel, and online. The company has 200+ offices across the country along with 45,000+ advisors ensuring a wide reach to the customers. Exide Life has a claim settlement ratio of 97.03% in FY 2018-19.
8. SBI Life
SBI Life is a result of a joint venture between State Bank of India (largest banker in India) and BNP Paribas Cardiff (a leading global insurer). SBI holds the majority stake of 74% and PNB Paribas owns a 26% stake. SBI Life offers a multitude of individual and group insurance plans including protection, money back, child, investment, retirement, and savings plans. SBI Life has a claim settlement ratio of 95.o3% in FY 2018-19.
9. Pramerica Life
Pramerica Life Insurance Company comes into existence with a joint venture between Prudential International Insurance Holdings Ltd (a fully owned subsidiary of Prudential Financial). DPLI has 144 branches across India, 3143 employees, 4710.574 Crores Asset under Management, and more than 20 million lives secured as on 31st August 2019. Pramerica Life has a claim settlement ratio of 96.80% in FY 2018-19.
10. Aditya Birla Sun Life
Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance Company is a joint venture between Aditya Birla Group (a multinational conglomerate) and Sun Life Financial Inc (a renowned Canada-based international financial services company). The company commenced its insurance business in the year 2000. Aditya Birla Sun Life offers protection, wealth with protection, health, child cover, retirement, and savings plans. Aditya Birla Sun Life has a claim settlement ratio of 97.15% in FY 2018-19.
Note: The insurance companies mentioned above are based on the high claim settlement ratio extracted from IRDAI Annual Report for FY 2018-19. to know all Life Insurance companies claim settlement Ratio for FY 2018-19
Top 10 Health Insurance Companies in India 2020
In order to guide customers while buying health insurance, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has been coming out with a list of best health companies every year. Both General Insurers (private and public) and Specialized Health Insurance companies are authorized to offer health plans to the customers. Based on the performances with regards to companies’ Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) and their overall financial standing, the top 10 Health Insurance Companies of India are as follows:
1. HDFC ERGO Health Insurance Limited
HDFC ERGO Health Insurance Limited (formerly, Apollo Munich Health Insurance) is a Joint Venture of HDFC Ltd and ERGO International AG. It has an impressive Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) of 63% for the financial year 2018-19, and it has brought innovations like lifetime renewals and portability benefits of the existing policies.
2. Star Health & Allied Insurance Company Limited
Star Health & Allied Insurance Company is a joint venture between Oman Health Insurance Company, ETA Ascon Group and a few veterans of the country boasts of an Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) of 63% for FY 2018-19. The company has an in-house TPA to deal with cashless facility seamlessly while also coming up with exciting products like Diabetes Safe (for diabetic patients) and Star NetPlus (for HIV+ patients).
3. Max Bupa Health Insurance Company Limited
Max Bupa Health Insurance Company is a joint venture between Max India Limited and Bupa Group brought into existence in 2010. The latest ICR for this health care company stands at 54% for FY 2018-19 and offers enrollment to its policies for citizens of all age groups.
4. SBI General Insurance Company Limited
SBI General Insurance Co. Ltd comes with a joint venture of State Bank of India and Insurance Australia Group (IAG). SBI General has a wide presence in over 23,000 branches of State Bank Group. It covers over 110 cities across India along with over 350 locations through satellite resources. It has an Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) of 72% for FY 2018-19.
5. Religare Health Insurance Company Limited
Religare Health Insurance Company is a joint venture between Religare Enterprises Limited, Union Bank of India, and Corporation Bank that was launched in 2012. However, in a short period of time, it has shown tremendous growth and made a mark in the insurance sector with an Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) of 55% for FY 2018-19. It is being promoted by the founders of Fortis Hospitals.
6. ManipalCigna Health Insurance Company Limited
Manipal Cigna Health Insurance Company is a comparatively new player in the Indian insurance sector being launched only in 2014 and has immediately become part of the best health insurance companies in India. It’s Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) for 2018-19 stands at an impressive figure of 62% that is a no mean feat considering it’s so new to the market.
7. Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company Limited
Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company is a joint venture between Bajaj Finserv Limited and Allianz SE has some health products up its sleeve. The three major products are Health Guard, Silver Health, and Star Package. Bajaj has the distinction of being the first company to provide captive TPA with certain efficiencies. Its Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) is 69% for 2018-19.
8. New India Assurance Company Limited
New India Assurance Company is a fully owned company by the government of India has been in operations since 1919 and is most famous for its Mediclaim policy. The most unique feature of this health insurance policy is that it provides a differential rating for major metros in comparison to other locations. The latest Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) for FY 2018-19 is 95.39% that might be on the higher side, but it covers up for any losses or deficiencies from other insurance products.
9. Oriental Insurance Company Limited
Oriental Insurance Company is a public sector general insurance company that offers a number of health insurance products. The best part about this insurer is that it doesn’t require a medical examination of the prospective customers up to the age of 60 years, while other companies press for medical examinations for everyone over 45 years of age. Its Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) stands at 106.10% as per IRDAI annual report for FY 2018-19.
10. National Insurance Company Limited
National Insurance Company is a fully government-owned general insurance company that is more than 100 years old and also provides health insurance coverage. Its Incurred Claims Ratio (ICR) is 109.94% for 2018-19, but it covers up its losses with other insurance products in various other categories. The most popular health product offered by the company is Varishtha Mediclaim for senior citizens.
Hope this information was useful for you. Find out about various plans being offered by these General insurance companies in India and buy a health insurance policy for you and your family, now!
What Is Insurance?
Insurance is a contract, represented by a policy, in which an individual or entity receives financial protection or reimbursement against losses from an insurance company. The company pools clients’ risks to make payments more affordable for the insured.
Insurance policies are used to hedge against the risk of financial losses, both big and small, that may result from damage to the insured or her property, or from liability for damage or injury caused to a third party.
How Insurance Works
There is a multitude of different types of insurance policies available, and virtually any individual or business can find an insurance company willing to insure them—for a price. The most common types of personal insurance policies are auto, health, homeowners, and life. Most individuals in the United States have at least one of these types of insurance, and car insurance is required by law.
Businesses require special types of insurance policies that insure against specific types of risks faced by a particular business. For example, a fast-food restaurant needs a policy that covers damage or injury that occurs as a result of cooking with a deep fryer. An auto dealer is not subject to this type of risk but does require coverage for damage or injury that could occur during test drives.
There are also insurance policies available for very specific needs, such as kidnap and ransom (K&R), medical malpractice, and professional liability insurance, also known as errors and omissions insurance.
Insurance Policy Components
When choosing a policy, it is important to understand how insurance works.
A firm understanding of these concepts goes a long way in helping you choose the policy that best suits your needs. There are three components (premium, policy limit, and deductible) to most insurance policies that are crucial.
Premium
A policy’s premium is its price, typically expressed as a monthly cost. The premium is determined by the insurer based on your or your business’s risk profile, which may include creditworthiness.
For example, if you own several expensive automobiles and have a history of reckless driving, you will likely pay more for an auto policy than someone with a single mid-range sedan and a perfect driving record. However, different insurers may charge different premiums for similar policies. So finding the price that is right for you requires some legwork.
Policy Limit
The policy limit is the maximum amount an insurer will pay under a policy for a covered loss. Maximums may be set per period (e.g., annual or policy term), per loss or injury, or over the life of the policy, also known as the lifetime maximum.
Typically, higher limits carry higher premiums. For a general life insurance policy, the maximum amount the insurer will pay is referred to as the face value, which is the amount paid to a beneficiary upon the death of the insured.
Deductible
The deductible is a specific amount the policy-holder must pay out-of-pocket before the insurer pays a claim. Deductibles serve as deterrents to large volumes of small and insignificant claims.
Deductibles can apply per-policy or per-claim depending on the insurer and the type of policy. Policies with very high deductibles are typically less expensive because the high out-of-pocket expense generally results in fewer small claims.
Special Considerations
With regard to health insurance, people who have chronic health issues or need regular medical attention should look for policies with lower deductibles.
Though the annual premium is higher than a comparable policy with a higher deductible, less expensive access to medical care throughout the year may be worth the trade-off.
Compete Risk-Free with $100,000 in Virtual Cash
Put your trading skills to the test with our Compete with thousands of Investopedia traders and trade your way to the top! Submit trades in a virtual environment before you start risking your own money. so that when you’re ready to enter the real market, you’ve had the practice you need.
What are the principal types of life insurance?
There are two major types of life insurance—term and whole life. Whole life is sometimes called permanent life insurance, and it encompasses several subcategories, including traditional whole life, universal life, variable life, and variable universal life. In 2016, about 4.3 million individual life insurance policies bought were term and about 6.4 million were whole life, according to the American Council of Life Insurers.
Life insurance products for groups are different from life insurance sold to individuals. The information below focuses on life insurance sold to individuals.
Term
Term Insurance is the simplest form of life insurance. It pays only if death occurs during the term of the policy, which is usually from one to 30 years. Most term policies have no other benefit provisions.
