India
Answer ... The Insurance Act specifies the types of insurance business that can be undertaken by insurers, such as:
- life;
- general (including marine, fire and miscellaneous);
- health (whether standalone or as a part of general insurance business); and
- reinsurance.
India
Answer ... Life, health and general insurance products can be offered to retail and commercial customers only once the specified procedure for filing the insurance product with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has been completed.
Until recently, retail products across lines of insurance business had to be filed under a ‘file and use’ procedure, where the product required the IRDAI’s prior approval before it could be launched; while commercial products could be filed under a ‘use and file’ procedure, where the product could be filed with the IRDAI and launched immediately thereafter. Further to a number of circulars issued by the IRDAI recently, insurers are now broadly permitted to offer all insurance products (ie, retail and commercial) under the ‘use and file’ procedure, where the product is approved and certified by the insurer’s internal committees, filed with the IRDAI and then launched.
In terms of the content of insurance contracts, the IRDAI has issued guidance for various forms of insurance products, including the following:
- The IRDAI (Protection of Policyholders’ Interests Regulations) 2017 (‘Policyholders Regulations’) prescribe certain terms that must be incorporated into life insurance, general insurance and health insurance policies.
- In addition, the Policyholders Regulations set out norms on the classification of exclusions and policy conditions that must be followed on policies. Further, all conditions precedent and warranties must be stated in express terms in the policy documentation.
- A number of regulations and guidelines specify that, broadly, product literature must be in “simple language” and “easily understandable to the public at large”; and technical terms used in the policy wording must be clarified to the insured.
- The IRDAI has issued specific guidance in addition to the foregoing for certain forms of insurance contracts, such as life, health, trade credit and surety insurance contracts.
- General insurers must still follow the wordings issued by the erstwhile Tariff Advisory Committee for various forms of property and engineering insurance contracts.
- In the last few years, the IRDAI has issued various standard form insurance contracts for various lines of insurance business, including standard products for fire and allied perils for dwellings, micro and small businesses, personal accident, health and individual immediate annuity.
Further, there are extraneous rules that impact on policy terms. For example, the Insurance Act gives the policyholder a right to override contrary policy terms in favour of Indian law and jurisdiction; and Indian policyholders cannot be stopped from approaching the consumer courts.
India
Answer ... Except in case of a marine insurance cover or other cover where the use of a proposal form is exempted, a proposal for grant of insurance cover – whether for life insurance business, general insurance business or health insurance business – must be evidenced by a document in written or electronic form.
The Policyholders Regulations require the insurer to process proposals with “speed and efficiency”; and the decision on the proposal must be communicated to the proposer in writing within 15 days of the date of receipt of the proposal (or any other requirements called for by the insurer). It is also the duty of the insurer to give the insured (free of charge) a copy of the proposal form submitted by the insured within 30 days of acceptance of the proposal.
India
Answer ... Please see questions 2.2 and 2.3.
India
Answer ... In addition to the applicable norms and regulations, the insurer and insured must comply with certain guiding principles which act as the basis for the obligations that arise upon the conclusion of an insurance contract. Principles such as utmost good faith, disclosure of material information and confidentiality must be followed by both parties, both prior to and after execution of the insurance contract. The consequence of breach of or non-compliance with these principles may result in a right to avoid the policy, with or without a refund of the premium.