Mumbai:
IDBI Federal Life Insurance, which is now owned by the Life Insurance Corporation(LIC), reported a net profit of Rs 133 cr during FY19, a growth of 31 per cent over FY18.
This is the 7th consecutive year of profit for the organisation since it first declared profit in FY13.
IDBI Federal witnessed an eight per cent growth in total premium from Rs 1,783 cr in FY18 to Rs 1,933 cr in FY19 driven by a 19 per cent growth in renewals and over 50 per cent growth in credit life.
The company has also announced a maiden dividend of 10 per cent as recommended by the Board of Directors which will be paid out subject to approval in the AGM.
Speaking on the company’s performance during the year, Mr. Vighnesh Shahane, MD & CEO, IDBI Federal Life Insurance said, “In FY2018-19, with a tight control on costs, a focus on underwriting and a leaner organisation, we have been able to serve our customers better which has resulted in improved scores on most parameters. We also implemented a slew of digital initiatives which enhanced the customer experience and helped bring in further efficiencies across our distribution channels.”
The organisation’s efforts to provide superior customer service and develop long-lasting relationships have borne fruit with 13th month persistency reaching 86 per cent and the company being in the top quartile of all persistency buckets.
The surrender ratio of 2.15 per cent in FY19 is among the lowest in the industry. Through the use of analytics and the implementation of robust risk mitigation measures, our claims are among the lowest in the industry.
During the year, IDBI Federal experienced a robust growth of 32 per cent in VNB driven by a single-minded focus on adapting our product mix to the changing needs of customers. The company also maintained a solvency margin of 334 per cent to take care of the interests of policyholders.
Further, in July 2018, IDBI Federal was the first new-age life insurance company to wipe out all accumulated losses.
Elaborating further, Mr. Shahane said, “In the year ahead, we would continue to keep customer needs at the centre of all that we do so as to truly enable our customers to create the life and lifestyle of their choice. On the products front, we are expecting new regulations and we hope to further enhance our product portfolio and make it more customer-centric by leveraging the new areas opened up by the regulations. We will also look to continue along our digital journey by introducing initiatives that help us to make customer interactions at every touch-point an even better experience.”
Keeping customers’ preferences at the epicentre led to the fifth consecutive year of zero open complaints at the end of FY 18-19 in the Integrated Grievance Management System (IGMS) of IRDAI. The average turnaround time (TAT) in resolving complaints is below 2 days which is among the best in the life insurance industry and much lower than the industry average of 6 days.