Covid cases drive up insurance demand

The study compared data between November 1 and December 31 of 2021 with the same period in 2020. Insurance companies said there has been an increase in demand across all retail health insurance products, especially packages such as Corona Kavach.

Digit Insurance released an internal study on the trends in demand for health insurance that also showed that the number of lives covered under group health policies saw a nearly three-fold rise and more corporates bought health covers to ensure the well-being of their employees.

Under the insurer’s group health portfolio, the number of lives covered surged by more than 170 per cent in big cities, including Chennai, from 1,52,000 lives in November-December 2020 to 4,15,000 lives in November-December 2021 across the country. While demand for health covers has gone up, the average sum insured across products dropped by 17 per cent. This indicates that more people are buying health insurance but with a lower sum insured.

The comprehensive treatment programmes launched by private hospitals, especially the ones offering to cover COVID management and treatment have also seen a surge in subscribers as more people have taken up the policies.