Budget 2018: Tweaks likely in govt insurance schemes

The Union Budget to be presented on February 1 is likely to make tweaks to the insurance schemes under the Jan Suraksha Yojana, namely the personal accident and term insurance. This could include some changes in the product structure and revisions in the pricing.

The Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana or term insurance offers a cover of Rs 2 lakh with an annual premium of Rs 330. Similarly, the Suraksha Bima or personal accident scheme offers Rs 2 lakh cover for accidental death for an annual premium of Rs 12.

"We have sought certain tweaks in the product including some upwards premium revision as well as measures to curb fraudulent claims. We have been assured of measures to deal with this," said a senior private sector insurance company chief.

These insurance schemes, along with Atal Pension Yojana was launched in May 2015 to provide accessible basic insurance covers for Indians at a nominal cost. The products are sold solely through bank branches for which they earn a small commission.

There have also been concerns about the slow pace of enrollment into the schemes. The personal accident policy has had more than 133 million policyholders while the term insurance policy has had 53 million policyholders.

"Banks could also be encouraged to sell more of the policies by offering a better incentive under the scheme. Some announcements are likely," said a senior official associated with this development.

Fraudulent claims have been reported, especially from the cooperative and regional rural banks. Due to this, insurers said that claims have also been rejected for causes including fraudulent documents produced and incorrect declaration of facts. These could be tackled through changes in underwriting structure by the budget announcements.

To prevent misuse of the products, the terms of the PMJJBY policy state that the insurance cover will not be available for death (other than due to accident) occurring during the first 45 days from the date of enrollment into the scheme.