The novel coronavirus outbreak and subsequent lockdown has forced businesses to stay shut and people to stay homebound. Many people as well as organisations have incurred financial loses.
While the second phase of the lockdown is slated to end on May 3rd, many states have batted for an extension. It remains unclear as to what the magnitude of the financial repercussions will be.
But it is not all bad news when it comes to businesses. Take the Life Insurance Corporation of India for example. Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, India’s largest life insurer has its highest number of policies for the last six years. This is for the just concluded financial year 2019-20.
Individual New Business performance of the Corporation as at March 2020 has shown impressive figures of 2.19 crores in number of policies and Rs 51,227 crores in first year premium income. While ensuring growth in Number and Premium both, the Corporation has achieved a healthy business mix. This is in spite of the truncation of the most productive fortnight of the year. The company collected single premium of Rs 21,967 crores and non-single premium of Rs 29260 crores, the ratio being 42.88 for single premium and 57.12 for non-single premium.
The LIC Pension and Group Schemes Vertical created a new record by clocking more than one trillion rupees premium income during the Financial Year 2019 – 20.
LIC collected Rs 126,749 Crores as Group Schemes new business premium income as against rs 91,179 crores in the previous year with a growth rate of 39.01% and a market share of 80.54% as compared to 77.94% last year.
Overall, LIC has achieved an impressive growth rate of 25.17% in first year new business premium as compared to private players who have collectively achieved a premium growth rate of 11.64.%. The industry’s positive growth in policies is also due to LIC’s superlative performance. The corporation’s composite market share in the number of policies and first year premium as at 31st March 2020 is 75.90% and 68.74% respectively which is an increase of 1.19% in number of policies and 2.50% in first year premium.
On the claims front, despite facing severe constraints due to the lockdown up to 31.3.20, LIC settled 2.03 crore Maturity and Money Back claims and annuities. It also settled 7.50 lakhs of death claims.
Annuity payments due in March 2020 and April 2020 have also been settled on due dates.
In a press note the company credited the “unflinching trust of its customers and the dedicated efforts of its entire team of employees, agents and channel partners” for the performance.
