After witnessing a drop in premiums for two consecutive months in April and May, non-life insurers have seen positive growth of 7.82% in gross premiums in June. But the first quarter (Q1) of the current financial year (2020-21, or FY21) saw premiums of non-life insurers decline 4.24% year-on-year (YoY) owing to the lockdown.

In June, non-life insurers — general insurers, standalone health insurers, and specialised public sector (PSU) insurers — recorded gross premiums to the tune of Rs 13,961.25 crore, compared to Rs 12,947.89 crore last year in the same month. In Q1FY21 though, premiums collected by insurers stood at Rs 39,329.62 crore versus Rs 41,072.14 crore — a drop of more than 4%.

The non-life insurance industry has 25 general insurers (including four state-owned general insurers), five standalone private health insurers, and two specialised PSU insurers.

The general insurers reported 4.11% growth in premiums in June, with premiums to the tune of Rs 12,375.67 crore, compared to Rs 11,886.17 crore. For Q1 of 2019-20 (FY20), general insurers collected Rs 35,667.60 crore as premiums, compared to Rs 37,934.61 crore in the same period last financial year, witnessing a drop of almost 6% YoY.

Among the top general insurers, which command a sizeable market share, state-owned The New India Assurance reported 5.29% growth YoY in Q1, followed by another state-owned insurer United India Insurance, with 8.34% growth in premiums. The large private sector insurers, such as ICICI Lombard, Bajaj Allianz General, HDFC Ergo, and Reliance General Insurance, registered a drop in premium collection in Q1FY20.

Standalone private health insurers reported an impressive 42% growth in premiums for June at Rs 1,311.31 crore, and for the quarter, they recorded 15.76% growth, with premiums collected to the tune of Rs 3,232 crore. Due to the pandemic, the retail health portfolio has seen good growth, as consumers have felt the need to get protection in these uncertain times.