More power to the insured
A visit to the newly uploaded website of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority will help consumers to deal with their insurers more effectively

ARE you angry with an insurance agent for deliberately misrepresenting facts and selling you an insurance product unsuited to your needs, but do not know what to do? Are you frustrated with the inordinate delay on the part of your insurer in processing your claim on your householder’s policy? Are you taken aback by your insurer’s refusal to renew your health policy this year? Are you upset with your insurance company for not even bothering to acknowledge your complaint?

Well, I would suggest that you visit the newly uploaded website of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority: www.policyholder, gov.in You will not only find answers to all your problems, but would also be in a better position to deal with your insurers, because the website not only tells you about your rights as a consumer, as a policy holder, but also about the various regulations being enforced by the insurance regulator to protect your interests.

In short, it will help you find answers to many of your questions on insurance and make you an alert consumer and help you deal better with those that try to sell you policies on false promises. It will also provide you a platform for lodging your complaint against an insurance company. The website is a must-read for all consumers.

The website tells you how to buy an insurance product, what precautions need to be taken at the time of sale, your right to return the policy within 15 days of receiving the policy document (in case of life insurance policies and health insurance policies that have a minimum of three-year term). It also tells you how to fill up an insurance form and what precautions to be taken while doing so (always ensure that the information provided is true and accurate as otherwise it will affect your claim), how to make your claim, the papers required (here, I think the website needs to provide more details) and in case of a problem, how to get your grievance redressed. It also takes you to the grievance redress policy put in place by each of the insurance companies. There is also a special emphasis on insurance and senior citizens.

But what I liked best was the icon "Protecting you" on the website — if you click on that you will be able to see the various measures taken by the regulator to protect consumer interest and a reading of these measures will really help you immensely. . For example, it tells you how an insurer cannot arbitrarily refuse to renew your policy. It also educates you about the health insurance portability . There is also useful information on a mobile application introduced by IRDA to help consumers compare Unit-Linked Insurance Policies (ULIPs) of different insurance companies. You can access the site www.m.irda.gov.in with any mobile device.

The website gives statistics for 2010-11 on the number of complaints resolved by each insurer in the life and the non-life sectors and the number of complaints still pending with them. This is highly useful information for consumers and would help them in their choice of insurers. But in order to make a proper assessment and compare their performance vis-`E0-vis the number of complaints, the regulator should also give the volume of business transacted by each insurer and calculate the percentage of complaints accordingly.

Similarly, it should put out information on the average time taken for resolution of complaints by each insurer. Information on the time taken for claim processing would also be an important input. Against each insurance company, the action taken against them (if any) by the regulator for violations of its regulations, should also be provided. The number of cases filed against each of them before the Ombudsman would also be helpful.

If these information are available in a consumer-friendly format, it would help consumers compare the quality of service of each insurer and make an informed choice. In fact, a comparative data on all insurers, based on a set of quality parameters would be highly welcome.

Similarly, the orders of Ombudsman available on the website (under the head ‘case laws and judgements’) right now are not comprehensive enough to really serve the purpose of educating consumers about the case laws. It would be better if the website can give a link to the Governing Body of Insurance Council website (GBIC) that gives the awards of Ombudsman, with case law details. Subsequently, important consumer court and Supreme Court decisions could also be added. Similarly, the website should simplify for consumers, the various policy terms and conditions and the exemption clauses, which are usually couched in highly legal terms and are not easily understood by consumers.

All in all, it would be really worthwhile for you to visit the site and read up on insurance — it will make you an alert insurance consumer. You can also send in your comments to IRDA, but before May 21.

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