Offline agents continue to dominate insurance market in India: Report

Indian insurtech player InsuranceDekho on Wednesday released its survey findings that gauged the various factors influencing insurance buyers' decision to purchase insurance.

The survey was conducted among random insurance buyers across the country during January’22. 67.2 % of those surveyed had bought a policy less than a month ago. 33.7% of respondents were from metro cities indicating higher insurance penetration in the top metros compared to other regions in the country.

90.8% of respondents were males indicating that while women may influence the insurance buying decision but the final purchase is made by the male head of the family. 8.8% of respondents were female and the remaining 0.4% of respondents didn’t identify with either gender.

The survey findings reveal that the majority of the insurance mandate lies with the mid-age people followed by other age groups - 37.4% (age group 26-35 years) followed by 25.6% (age group upto 25 years), 16% (age group 46+ years), and 21% ( age group 36-45 years).

The survey respondents consisted of 41.2% salaried people, 28.8% self-employed/ business owners, 15.6% students, 9.6% professionals and the rest were retired.

Despite the increased digital penetration, offline agents continue to be the dominant channel for users to buy insurance with 39.6% of users buying insurance from them. Online insurance sellers (e.g. InsuranceDekho.com, PolicyBazaar.com) are the second most preferred channel with a 32.6% share. Insurer's direct website came distant 3rd at 15.6% and direct insurance company agents came last at 12% share.

“Insurance in India continues to have a low penetration rate as compared to other countries, especially when it comes to women. The survey explored underlying trends in customer awareness levels and their significance on insurers,” the company said in a statement. 

Ankit Agrawal, Founder of InsuranceDekho said: “This survey gives us in-depth insights into the consumer behaviour when it comes to the Indian insurance purchase decision. These findings not only help in understanding our customers better and planning accordingly but also assist in understanding the effect of the pandemic on the insurance coverage, and where we are lacking in terms of creating awareness among people and getting them suitably insured. The survey is not just limited to consumer behaviour, it tells a lot if we dig deeper.”