Insurance Companies in India: The insurance business in India is growing at a record pace. The industry grew 13% in 2007 and is projected to grow at a rate of 18% in 2008. The primary factor in this growth is the exploding middle class in India and a concerted effort to raise awareness about insurance in the rural areas of the country.
The insurance business in India has come full circle. In 1818, The Oriental Life Insurance Company, a British based corporation was the first company established to transact life insurance business. In 1907, The Indian Mercantile Insurance Ltd was the first company to transact all classes of general insurance business. By 1956, there were 245 insurance companies operating in India. At that time, the Indian government took over these companies and nationalized them. The General Insurance Business Act of 1972 consolidated the insurance industry under the control of the government.
Today, The Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority acts as the regulatory body in India and there are multiple private companies in the industry. The Life Corporation of India and General Insurance Corporation have stepped forward to develop India’s insurance industry.
One of the largest insurance companies in India is the United India Insurance Company Limited. The UIIC was incorporated in 1938 and today has over 18,000 employees in over 1300 offices. United India has been in the forefront of designing and implementing complex coverages to large customers and has been the pioneer in taking Insurance to the rural masses with large level implementation of Universal Health Insurance Program.
Some Indian firms use service contracts with overseas firms to fund their operations.
- Aditya Birla Group
- AVIVA Life Insurance
- Bajaj Allianz
- Bharati AXA Life Insurance
- Birla Sun Life Financial Services
- Birla Sun Life Insurance
- HDFC Standard Life Insurance
- ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd
- ING Vysya Life Insurance
- Kotak Mahindra
- Life Insurance Corporation Of India
- Max New York Life Insurance
- MetLife India Insurance Company Limited (MetLife)
- Oriental Insurance
- Reliance Life Insurance Company Limited
- SBI Life Insurance
- Shriram Life Insurance Co. Ltd
- Tata AIG Insurance Solutions
- United India Insurance Company
Last updated: December 12th, 2013
