Irdai standardizes technical notes for health, motor insurance policies

To expedite the product clearance process, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has standardized technical notes for filing health and motor insurance policies so that insurers can provide all necessary details in a prescribed standard format.

According to the regulator, this will help to ensure uniformity amongst insurers in the matter of filing pricing and product related information for insurance products.

Irdai lately has been taking up initiatives to standardize the entire health insurance product offerings for the customers, considering the complexity faced by them at the time of renewal or buying an insurance policy.

“The recent step is taken to ease the price pressure from the policyholders, as there were erratic hikes in the prices because of various new feature additions. As it’s is already mentioned in the Irdai guidelines that the insurers are required to submit a technical note detailing pricing aspects of health insurance product filing, the insurance companies will have to be answerable for every feature, which leads to the prices increase. This will allow customers to make an informed and calculative choice," said Naval Goel, founder and CEO, PolicyX.com, an insurance marketplace.

Under the consolidated guidelines on product filing by Irdai, the insurance companies now have to submit a standard format for technical note, detailing pricing aspects of health insurance product filing. “The consolidated guidelines on product filing in the health insurance business is actually a means to tighten the control over the price of health insurance. The guidelines will bring a common language to be used by the insurance companies for the communication purpose with their customers," Goel added.

For health insurance, under the technical note, insurance have to provide description of the methodology used in pricing and justification for the choice of methodology. The companies will also have to explain how the impact of co-pay, pre-existing disease, waiting period, cost of pre-insurance health check-up, sub-limits, no-claim bonus, wellness benefits, outpatient benefits and any other specific feature have been allowed in pricing.

For motor insurance, companies will have to provide assumptions used in pricing the product or add-ons along with justification, details of how the impact of excess and any other specific feature have been allowed in pricing as well as how sub-limits or caps have been considered in estimation of premium rates.

Source: Live Mint