Rains: Boom time for insurance cos

The Mumbai July 26 deluge has resulted in doubling the sale of householder's policies and has created huge awareness among people for insuring their properties in the city.

Amol Phadnis, national manager-underwriting, ICICI Lombard, says that the company is on an average insuring 400 householder policies a day in the last one and half months after the Mumbai floods compared with 200 householder policies a day sold last year.

While there are no accurate data on the number of policies sold, there has been a definite spurt in the number of householder policies, say General Insurers.

Unlike motor insurance, which is made mandatory by law, householder's insurance, which comes under miscellaneous portfolio, depends on individual house owners to take a cover.

K Krishnamoorthy, head-underwriting, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, says, "We have noticed a 50 per cent-60 per cent growth in the sale of householders policies after the recent Mumbai floods." Phadnis says that it is common after a natural calamity for the spurt in sales of insurance as an aftermath for the first few months.

Another senior official of a public sector company said that with the monsoon lashing across the state, people are still apprehensive. However, it seems to be a golden opportunity for insurance companies to sell householder's policies, which at other times has met with lacklustre response.

Antony Jacob, managing director, Royal Sundaram Alliance Insurance Company, said last month alone the insurer had sold around 500 individual home insurance policies in Mumbai.

"There has been an enhanced interest in this product from customers, who call directly on our call centre, and also from our distribution partners and agents," he added.