Illustration: Ajay Mohanty
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) on Thursday asked insurance companies to enable their IT systems to interact with Digilocker, enabling policyholders to use the service effectively.
In its Master Circular on Protection of Interests of Policyholders under Irdai (Protection of Interests of Policyholders, Operations and Allied Matters of Insurers) Regulations, 2024, which replaces 30 circulars, the regulator has consolidated policyholder rights into a single reference document and emphasised measures to provide a smoother, faster and hassle-free claim settlement experience for the policyholder and enhance service standards to foster a climate of trust and transparency within the insurance sector.
According to the circular, both life insurers and general insurers are required to provide an essential summary of important information at different stages of the insurance contract. This includes guidance for prospective clients, policyholders and customers before the sale, at the proposal stage, upon receipt of policy documents, during the policy term and at the time of claim for all insurance segments.
Insurers must provide a Customer Information Sheet (CIS) for all insurance segments, outlining the key features, benefits and exclusions of the policy. The proposal form and CIS must be made available in regional languages upon request by the customer.
Additionally, both life and general insurers will give policyholders a free 30-day review period to review the terms and conditions of the policy. The regulator also said that insurance companies will not accept premium proposal deposits on life or health insurance policies along with the proposal form, except in cases where coverage of the risk starts immediately after receipt of the premium.
Insurance companies must provide a search facility on their website to enable verification of authorised distribution channels that can sell their insurance products. A suitability assessment for life insurance is required for savings-related life insurance products and annuity products, excluding annuities purchased from NPS proceeds and retirement funds offered by employers.
In addition, at the same stage of preparing the proposal, insurers must collect the details of the nominee, including bank account details, to facilitate the rapid settlement of claims in the event of the death of the insured.
First published: September 5, 2024 | 20:28 IS
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this post is for general information purposes only. We make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the post for any purpose.
We respect the intellectual property rights of content creators. If you are the owner of any material featured on our website and have concerns about its use, please contact us. We are committed to addressing any copyright issues promptly and will remove any material within 2 days of receiving a request from the rightful owner.