LIC's policy revival campaign

THE Life Insurance Corporation of India has launched a special campaign with customer-friendly incentives to revive policies on which the payment of premium is under default.

The initiative runs till October 15, with plans for re-runs in the future. Insurance premiums left unpaid for over 30 days from their due date are in default and this constitutes a lapse in policy that can be revived only after a late fee has been paid.

LIC offers a 30 per cent waiver on such late fees _ subject to a ceiling of Rs 250 _ during the period of this campaign. Additional incentives allow for a relaxation of the otherwise mandatory self-declaration of good health and offers spot revival facilities. However, this scheme does not cover high-risk Triple cover plans and policies over Rs 5 lakh.

Group insurance from Birla Sun Life

Birla Sun Life Insurance has made a foray into the group insurance business that covers corporate and common user groups. According to their on-line resource, the product debuts in a relatively new market segment affording both employers and employees a win-win situation. Mr S. K. Mitra, Director, Financial Services, Aditya Birla Group, in a recent press conference said he expected an enthusiastic response from the corporate sector where the group had already established strong relationships through their other financial service ventures.

The plan is available to professional and borrower-lender groups (the latter covers banks-customers, credit card companies-card holders and other such business relationships) is an annual renewable policy with four riders: Accidental Death, Accidental Death and Dismemberment, Critical Illness and Term. The policy packages two options: One provides additional cover to the spouse and the other enables conversion to an individual policy. The options are flexible _ the cover can be uniform or graded or even a multiple of the salary, according to the categories of the corporate client.

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Rural products from Birla Sun Life: As part of its ongoing initiatives into capturing market share, Birla Sun Life recently launched its rural product, Birla Sun Life Bima Kavach Yojana, at a special ceremony in Hindalco Ltd, Renukoot, on Gandhi Jayanti. At a function held to celebrate the occasion, about 170 villagers who had bought their life insurance received their policy documents. The policy is a three-year single premium insurance cover in denominations of Rs 50, 100 and 200, and offers 100 times the amount of premium paid in the event of the death of the insurer.

The company has appointed Village Extension Workers (VEWs) to help create awareness and market the product. Typically, VEWs will be from local Aditya Birla Group companies involved in social improvement projects, and will be in charge of a cluster of 10-15 contiguous villages. They are seen as the liaison points between villagers and insurance workers and will act as first-level introducers and underwriters of the policy.

* HDFC Standard Life Insurance has launched two new insurance products called the Term Assurance Plan and the Loan Cover Term Assurance Plan. The former is a pure protection plan under which the sum assured is payable in the event of demise of the insured during the tenancy of the policy contract. The premium payable is low and well suited to the cost-conscious customer. As in the case of other HDFC Standard Life policies, the customer can enhance the insurance plan by adding optional covers like the 'accidental death benefit, 'critical illness benefit' and 'accelerated sum assured' - the last touted to be a first in the industry. The second plan launched is the Loan Cover Term Assurance Plan - one that has been designed to help a person's family repay outstanding loans in the event of demise of the insured. The policy cover of this plan decreases proportionately with the decrease in encumbrances. The launch of these plans are in line with the company's strategy of allowing customers to choose from a range of products and to customize insurance plans. According to the company's on-line press release this strategy has proven to be a success with over 65% of the customers opting for customized insurance solutions rather than standard products. -- BL Research Bureau