Insurance fair gets good response

People are increasingly turning to insurance policies to ensure their financial security. Many think the investments will help them retire rich, while others buy policies to ward off future shocks.

This was evident at the three-day insurance fair at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka yesterday.

About 50 insurers are participating in the show and they were happy with the turnout.

“People are more interested in savings and investment policies than other schemes. But relatively aged people look to buy retirement policies,” Belal Hossain, chief underwriter officer of National Life Insurance, told The Daily Star. He said 90 percent of their policies are for savings and investments.

Suparna Roy, assistant vice president of Delta Life, echoed the same. “We are seeing people curious about the savings policies.”

Insurance was allowed in the private sector in the early 1980s. National Life and Delta Life began their business in 1985 and 1986 respectively.

National Life's premium income was Tk 781 crore and Delta Life's around Tk 550 crore in 2015. Yet, officials of these companies struggle to sell policies as people are not aware of the instruments.

According to Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA), only 0.5 percent of the population has insurance coverage in Bangladesh, significantly lower than those in the neighbouring countries. More than 5 percent people have insurance coverage in India and 7 percent in the Philippines.

The average spending on insurance is around $7 a person in Bangladesh, while it is $55 in India.

Farzana Chowdhury, managing director of Green Delta Insurance, blamed a lack of awareness and knowledge for the poor coverage of insurance in Bangladesh. Delay in claim settlements is another major drawback, she added.

“People don't know that everything -- from buildings to businesses and belongings -- can be insured,” she said.

Green Delta is among the few companies that try to settle claims fast, she said. The company paid Tk 61 crore against a claim on Wednesday even, she said. But all the companies will have to pay properly, Farzana added.

There are other ways the industry gets a bad name too -- fraudulent clients often do not deposit their premiums duly. There are many cases where a policyholder paid his/her premium regularly, but the agent concerned did not pay the money into the company's account.

“We have introduced mobile phone messages for the policyholders who will get updates after depositing their premiums. Also, all our 1,800 branches across the country have been made online, so that clients can transact from any of these branches,” said Hossain of National Life.

Shefaque Ahmed, chairman of IDRA, said he is trying to sensitise both the insurers and policyholders about insurance.

“As part of our awareness building move, we have organised the fair that is the first of its kind,” Ahmed added.

On claim settlements, the IDRA chairman said it is improving gradually.

If any policyholder comes up with allegations against any company, IDRA moves fast to resolve the claim with the company concerned, he added.

The fair comes to a close today.