Bharti AXA General Insurance, a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and AXA, said the company has registered a 38 per cent increase in its premium income in the financial year 2019-20.
“We are pleased to grow much faster than the industry and maintain a steady growth performance across key matrices of the business in the financial year 2019-20. The expansion of distribution network and partnerships, new business alliances along with improved business activations from the robust bancassurance accompanied by diversified product portfolio helped us achieve healthy premium growth at more than triple of the industry growth rate in the last fiscal,’’ said Sanjeev Srinivasan, MD and CEO, Bharti AXA General Insurance.
Driven by crop, commercial lines, motor and health insurance, he said that all product segments witnessed strong double-digit growth in 2019-20. Crop insurance grew by 59 per cent to Rs 828 crore in the last financial year from Rs 519 crore in 2018-19. Commercial lines segment focused on SME and MSME to grow by 49 per cent at Rs 430 crore in the year ended March 31, 2020, against Rs 289 crore in the corresponding fiscal a year earlier. Similarly, motor insurance posted 30 per cent growth to Rs 1,488 crore in the last fiscal from Rs 1,143 crore in 2018-19, while health insurance grew by 23 per cent at Rs 410 crore in 2019-20 against Rs 334 crore in the corresponding financial year a year ago.
Bharti AXA General Insurance, which currently distributes through nine banks and over 50 NBFCs and Cooperative Banks, also added a significant number of distribution partnerships in the financial year 2019-20. The combined ratio, a measure of profitability that takes into account claims and expenses as a proportion of premiums, has gone up by 5.4 per cent and stood at 120.7 per cent in 2019-20 against 115.3 per cent in 2018-19. This was a result of increased investments in technology, infrastructure and human capital to strengthen distribution network and service delivery platforms as the company is currently in the investment phase of its growth journey.
Continuing on its path of innovation, the company also proposed two new products — Short Term Health Insurance and Usage-based Motor Insurance — under the Sandbox initiative launched by IRDAI and received approval for both the innovative products in 2019-20.
“The current financial year looks challenging in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and disruptions caused by the nationwide lockdown. Focus on technology and automation of processes has helped us operate seamlessly as we continue to service our customer and partners remotely, successfully managing business, servicing, surveys and claim settlement. In 2020-21, we will pursue opportunities across channels with constant emphasis on customer centricity, focus on superior risk selections, prudent cost management, claims efficiency with investments in technologies and innovation to boost all lines of businesses,” Srinivasan said.
