Tata AIG Life Insurance has partnered with state-run lender Syndicate Bank to extend a group insurance cover to home loan customers. The insurance cover will be made available to existing as well as new customers for home loan liability. This will be a real protection plan and customers can opt to pay the insurance premiums upfront or they can include it in their home loan EMI.
K. Devananda Upadhyaya, General Manager – Insurance and Marketing at Syndicate Bank, said, “With over 1.6 lakh home loan borrowers, we have a huge portfolio, as this product will be made available to existing customers also. However, this insurance product would be optional”.
Neetasha Joshi, Senior Vice-President and Business Head – South India, Tata AIG Life Insurance, said that this was a real protection product. According to her, the product would come with non-medical limits. In the event of prepayment of the home loan, customers have the option to continue the cover for the sum assured, or surrender the policy, which would also ensure refund of the premium paid for the remaining loan period.
Commenting on the projections, she said, “We are looking at 40,000 to 45,000 policies this year, amounting to Rs 25-30 crore of premium.”
Tata AIG Life Insurance Company started its life insurance business in India in April, 2001. It is a joint venture between the Tata Group (74%) and American International Group (26%). In 2010-11, its tenth year of operations, the company achieved breakeven by recording a net profit of Rs 52 crore. Total premium grew 14% to Rs 3,985 crore, from Rs 3,494 crore in 2009-10. During this period, unit-linked insurance plans or ULIPs accounted for 72% of their new business premium collections.The insurer also infused a capital of Rs 33 crore in the previous financial year.
Other offerings of Tata AIG Life comprise of savings plans, retirement plans, health plans, risk plans, child insurance plans and wealth plans.
