Latest news with #AshishShukla
Time of India
9 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Air India crash: Insurance companies grapple with claim complexities in some cases
The devastating Air India 171 plane crash, which claimed 241 lives on board and 29 on the ground, has created an unforeseen challenge for insurance companies to settle some claims where even the designated nominees have also died in the accident. This has added another layer of administrative burden for grieving families, while the insurance industry is navigating uncharted territory striving to balance due diligence with compassionate expediency. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has issued directives to fast-track claims. In its June 14 circular, IRDAI asked all insurance companies to submit weekly updates on claims from June 16 onwards and further directed them to appoint nodal officers, waive formalities such as FIRs and postmortem reports, and expedite disbursals under life and personal accident policies. ALSO READ: Air India Crash: Boeing 787's emergency power system was likely active before crash Live Events There have been some cases where the entire family has perished or both spouses died in the crash, which are making the claims process particularly complex. Major insurance providers, including Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), New India Assurance , HDFC Life , Iffco Tokio General Insurance, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company (GIC), and Tata AIA Insurance, quickly set up help desks at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital to expedite the process. ALSO READ: Ahmedabad plane crash: Air India, Boeing may face 'unlimited' liability if found negligent They are actively matching data from authorities with their records and proactively reaching out to affected families. However, while other cases were streamlined, complexities arose in instances where both the policyholder and their nominee died in the crash. Aamir Khan Pathan, Administrative Officer (Claims Department) at LIC, the country's largest insurer, highlighted this challenging scenario saying "in a few cases, the husband and wife both perished in the crash and had nominated each other as their policy". Ashish Shukla, another Administrative Officer with LIC, said that out of 10 claims received so far, one involves a situation where the insured nominated their spouse, and both died in the accident. Similarly, Manpreet Singh Sabharwal, Manager (Claims) at Iffco Tokio General Insurance Company, cited a case where a company director and his wife died, with the wife being the nominee. Nischal Buch, Principal Officer, Zonal Operations, Tata AIA, also reported one such case among the seven claims his company has received. Typically, when both the insured and nominee die, insurance companies require a succession certificate to identify the rightful heirs. However, given the extraordinary circumstances of the air crash, companies are making exceptions. "If both the insured as well as the nominee have died, we look for Class I heirs, which is typically the blood relatives like children," Shukla from the LIC explained. "If there are multiple children, then we take a declaration from the heirs on how the claim is to be settled and an indemnity bond has to be submitted to the company," he said. Buch added that their legal team is exploring the possibility of seeking joint declarations from all heirs to streamline the process in these complex cases. The impact of the crash extends beyond life insurance. Prakash Khanchandani, Administrative Officer with The New India Assurance, stated that his company has received seven claims: five related to personal accident policies and two for marine cargo that was onboard the flight. One marine cargo claim, worth Rs 6,50,000, has already been settled. For personal accident policies, nominees are still in the process of submitting details as families deal with the aftermath of losing loved ones. Bajaj Allianz reported four claims, including a marine cargo claim of Rs 55 lakh and three travel insurance policies, each for Rs 10 lakh, all involving passengers who perished in the accident. "We have currently settled three claims under our Travel Personal Accident insurance. In addition, one claim has been registered under our Marine Cargo insurance," the company told PTI in response to a query.
Hindustan Times
9 hours ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Air India plane crash: Both life insurance policyholders, nominees among dead
Ahmedabad: Insurance companies are facing challenges in settling claims of the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash victims last week as in many cases the policyholders and nominees both have died in the tragedy. There are instances of an entire family perishing or one of the spouses dying in the horrific June 12 crash of the London-bound plane, which claimed the lives of 241 persons on board and 29 on the ground. Immediately after the accident, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRADI) asked insurance companies to verify details of the deceased with their database on issuance of the overseas medical insurance, personal accident and life insurance policies. The advisory also stated no claim was to be denied or delayed due to procedural formalities in the case of confirmed deceased individuals from the passengers' list and persons at buildings affected by the crash. Accordingly, major insurers like the Life Insurance Corporation of India, New India Assurance, HDFC Life, Iffco Tokio General Insurance, Bajaj Allianz GIC and Tata AIG Insurance have set up their help desks at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital to expedite the process. The insurers said they are matching the data shared by authorities with their database and are proactively reaching out to the families. Also read: Air India flight from Delhi to Paris cancelled after issues found in pre-flight checks LIC administrative officer Ashish Shukla told PTI that the company has so far received 10 claims at the hospital and its offices. There is one case where the insured individual nominated the spouse and both died in the accident, said the officer from the country's largest insurance company. Manpreet Singh Sabharwal, manager (claims) at Iffco Tokio insurance, also pointed to a case where the director of a company and his wife, who was his nominee, died in the plane crash. The company has group insured its employees with Iffco Tokio, he said. Tata AIG's principal officer, zonal operations, Nischal Buch said they have so far received seven claims, of which one is a case where the deceased had nominated the spouse who, too, killed in the air crash. The task becomes difficult when both the insured individual and the nominee die, like in the case of air accidents, representatives of the insurance firms maintained. Shukla said in normal circumstances, they seek a succession certificate when both the insured individual and the nominee have died. As a special case, the company has now made an exception. Also read: 66 Dreamliner flights cancelled since fatal Air India crash that killed 270 "If both the insured as well as the nominee have died, we look for class one heirs, which is typically blood relatives like children. If there are multiple children, then we take a declaration from the heirs on how the claim is to be settled and an indemnity bond has to be submitted to the company," he said. Buch said his company's legal team is exploring if joint declarations of the heirs can be sought in cases where both the insured and the nominee have died. It is not just the life that is insured. There are cases of personal accident insurance, luggage insurance and even marine cargo insurance. Prakash Khanchandani, administrative officer with The New India Assurance, said the company has so far received seven claims -- five related to personal accident policy and two of the marine cargo on board. It has settled one marine cargo claim of ₹6.50 lakh. In cases of personal accident policy, the nominees are yet to submit their details as they are still in the process of disposing of the bodies, he said. Bajaj Allianz regional manager Nimish Joshi said the company has received four claims related to the crash victims. One is a marine cargo claim of ₹55 lakh which has been settled. The remaining three are travel insurance policies of ₹10 lakh each and those claims have also been settled, he added.
The Hindu
9 hours ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Air India plane crash: Insurers in a fix as both policyholders and nominees among dead
Insurance companies are facing challenges in settling claims of the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash victims last week, as in many cases the policyholders and nominees both have died in the tragedy. Also Read | Government constituted high-level panel meets, looks into possible causes There are instances of an entire family perishing or one of the spouses dying in the horrific June 12 crash of the London-bound plane, which claimed the lives of 241 persons on board and 29 on the ground. Immediately after the accident, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) asked insurance companies to verify details of the deceased with their database on issuance of the overseas medical insurance, personal accident and life insurance policies. The advisory also stated no claim was to be denied or delayed due to procedural formalities in the case of confirmed deceased individuals from the passengers' list and persons at buildings affected by the crash. Accordingly, major insurers such as the Life Insurance Corporation of India, New India Assurance, HDFC Life, IFFCO Tokio General Insurance, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, and Tata AIG Insurance have set up their help desks at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital to expedite the process. The insurers said they are matching the data shared by authorities with their database and are proactively reaching out to the families. LIC administrative officer Ashish Shukla told PTI that the company has so far received 10 claims at the hospital and its offices. There is one case where the insured individual nominated the spouse and both died in the accident, said the officer from the country's largest insurance company. Manpreet Singh Sabharwal, manager (claims) at IIFCO Tokio insurance, also pointed to a case where the director of a company and his wife, who was his nominee, died in the plane crash. The company has group insured its employees with Iffco Tokio, he said. Tata AIG's principal officer, zonal operations, Nischal Buch, said they have so far received seven claims, of which one is a case where the deceased had nominated the spouse who, too, killed in the air crash. The task becomes difficult when both the insured individual and the nominee die, as in the case of air accidents, representatives of the insurance firms maintained. Mr. Shukla said that in normal circumstances, they seek a succession certificate when both the insured individual and the nominee have died. As a special case, the company has now made an exception. "If both the insured as well as the nominee have died, we look for class one heirs, which are typically blood relatives like children. If there are multiple children, then we take a declaration from the heirs on how the claim is to be settled, and an indemnity bond has to be submitted to the company," he said. Mr. Buch said his company's legal team is exploring whether joint declarations of the heirs can be sought in cases where both the insured and the nominee have died. It is not just life that is insured. There are cases of personal accident insurance, luggage insurance and even marine cargo insurance. Prakash Khanchandani, administrative officer with The New India Assurance, said the company has so far received seven claims — five related to personal accident policy and two of the marine cargo on board. It has settled one marine cargo claim of ₹6.50 lakh. In cases of personal accident policy, the nominees are yet to submit their details as they are still in the process of disposing of the bodies, he said. Bajaj Allianz regional manager Nimish Joshi said the company has received four claims related to the crash victims. One is a marine cargo claim of Rs 55 lakh which has been settled. The remaining three are travel insurance policies of Rs 10 lakh each and those claims have also been settled, he added.
Mint
10 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
AI plane crash: Insurers in a fix as both policyholders and nominees among dead
Ahmedabad, Jun 18 (PTI) Insurance companies are facing challenges in settling claims of the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash victims last week as in many cases the policyholders and nominees both have died in the tragedy. There are instances of an entire family perishing or one of the spouses dying in the horrific June 12 crash of the London-bound plane, which claimed the lives of 241 persons on board and 29 on the ground. Immediately after the accident, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRADI) asked insurance companies to verify details of the deceased with their database on issuance of the overseas medical insurance, personal accident and life insurance policies. The advisory also stated no claim was to be denied or delayed due to procedural formalities in the case of confirmed deceased individuals from the passengers' list and persons at buildings affected by the crash. Accordingly, major insurers like the Life Insurance Corporation of India, New India Assurance, HDFC Life, Iffco Tokio General Insurance, Bajaj Allianz GIC and Tata AIG Insurance have set up their help desks at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital to expedite the process. The insurers said they are matching the data shared by authorities with their database and are proactively reaching out to the families. LIC administrative officer Ashish Shukla told PTI that the company has so far received 10 claims at the hospital and its offices. There is one case where the insured individual nominated the spouse and both died in the accident, said the officer from the country's largest insurance company. Manpreet Singh Sabharwal, manager (claims) at Iffco Tokio insurance, also pointed to a case where the director of a company and his wife, who was his nominee, died in the plane crash. The company has group insured its employees with Iffco Tokio, he said. Tata AIG's principal officer, zonal operations, Nischal Buch said they have so far received seven claims, of which one is a case where the deceased had nominated the spouse who, too, killed in the air crash. The task becomes difficult when both the insured individual and the nominee die, like in the case of air accidents, representatives of the insurance firms maintained. Shukla said in normal circumstances, they seek a succession certificate when both the insured individual and the nominee have died. As a special case, the company has now made an exception. "If both the insured as well as the nominee have died, we look for class one heirs, which is typically blood relatives like children. If there are multiple children, then we take a declaration from the heirs on how the claim is to be settled and an indemnity bond has to be submitted to the company," he said. Buch said his company's legal team is exploring if joint declarations of the heirs can be sought in cases where both the insured and the nominee have died. It is not just the life that is insured. There are cases of personal accident insurance, luggage insurance and even marine cargo insurance. Prakash Khanchandani, administrative officer with The New India Assurance, said the company has so far received seven claims --five related to personal accident policy and two of the marine cargo on board. It has settled one marine cargo claim of ₹ 6.50 lakh. In cases of personal accident policy, the nominees are yet to submit their details as they are still in the process of disposing of the bodies, he said. Bajaj Allianz regional manager Nimish Joshi said the company has received four claims related to the crash victims. One is a marine cargo claim of ₹ 55 lakh which has been settled. The remaining three are travel insurance policies of ₹ 10 lakh each and those claims have also been settled, he added.
