Latest news with #GirijaSubramanian
Economic Times
04-08-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Health insurers bleed despite premium hikes
Mumbai: Loss ratios at frontline Indian health insurers are continuing to look less flattering as hospital bills and claims, fuelled by an estimated 14% inflation in medical-related costs, overshadow multiple increases in coverage premiums. The pace of increases in claims has run ahead of double-digit premium enhancements across government, group, and retail health portfolios. New India Assurance saw its incurred claims ratio deteriorate to 109% in Q1 FY26, up from 106% a year ago. The state-owned insurer raised premiums, but the losses only deepened. ADVERTISEMENT With a 10% cap on premium hikes for senior citizens and inflation at 14%, there is already a 4% gap, said Girija Subramanian, CMD, New India Assurance. Even after rate hikes, loss ratios have not improved and issue lies with service provider ecosystem, not underwriting, she told investors. ICICI Lombard reported a rise in the loss ratio in its retail health book from 72.5% to 74.3% in Q1. The insurer called it a Q1 phenomenon and expects to end the year in the loss ratio range of 65-70%. "There has been an increase in incidence," said Gopal Balachandran, CFO, ICICI Lombard. "But even when we started the last year, the Q1 number was 72.5%...ended the year at 67.9%." Star Health's incurred claims ratio climbed to 68.5% from 66.9%, while its overall loss ratio worsened to 69.5% from 68.1%. The health segment continues to dominate general insurance, accounting for 40.2% of industry gross premium income. "There is a catch as medical inflation is not uniform across the board," said Avinash Singh, senior research analyst, Emkay Global. "Each insurer faces a different inflation curve depending on its portfolio mix. PSUs, for example, have older policyholder cohorts in their retail book who require more tertiary care and this pushes their inflation-linked claims much higher than industry averages." Niva Bupa has seen loss ratio move up to 68% on retail book. "Broadly, our loss ratio has increased by around 300 basis points," said Krishnan Ramachandran, MD, Niva Bupa. "Key drivers are a shift in business mix-group health or B2B loss ratios are structurally higher than retail-and some uptick in retail losses." (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)
Time of India
04-08-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Health insurers bleed despite premium hikes
Mumbai: Loss ratios at frontline Indian health insurers are continuing to look less flattering as hospital bills and claims , fuelled by an estimated 14% inflation in medical-related costs, overshadow multiple increases in coverage premiums. The pace of increases in claims has run ahead of double-digit premium enhancements across government, group, and retail health portfolios. New India Assurance saw its incurred claims ratio deteriorate to 109% in Q1 FY26, up from 106% a year ago. The state-owned insurer raised premiums, but the losses only deepened. With a 10% cap on premium hikes for senior citizens and inflation at 14%, there is already a 4% gap, said Girija Subramanian, CMD, New India Assurance. Even after rate hikes, loss ratios have not improved and issue lies with service provider ecosystem, not underwriting, she told investors. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Artificial Intelligence Data Science Healthcare others PGDM Data Analytics Digital Marketing Data Science Degree Technology Others Cybersecurity Leadership Finance CXO Project Management Product Management healthcare Design Thinking Operations Management Public Policy MBA MCA Management Skills you'll gain: Duration: 7 Months S P Jain Institute of Management and Research CERT-SPJIMR Exec Cert Prog in AI for Biz India Starts on undefined Get Details ICICI Lombard reported a rise in the loss ratio in its retail health book from 72.5% to 74.3% in Q1. The insurer called it a Q1 phenomenon and expects to end the year in the loss ratio range of 65-70%. "There has been an increase in incidence," said Gopal Balachandran, CFO, ICICI Lombard. "But even when we started the last year, the Q1 number was 72.5%...ended the year at 67.9%." Star Health's incurred claims ratio climbed to 68.5% from 66.9%, while its overall loss ratio worsened to 69.5% from 68.1%. The health segment continues to dominate general insurance, accounting for 40.2% of industry gross premium income. "There is a catch as medical inflation is not uniform across the board," said Avinash Singh, senior research analyst, Emkay Global. "Each insurer faces a different inflation curve depending on its portfolio mix. PSUs, for example, have older policyholder cohorts in their retail book who require more tertiary care and this pushes their inflation-linked claims much higher than industry averages." Live Events Niva Bupa has seen loss ratio move up to 68% on retail book. "Broadly, our loss ratio has increased by around 300 basis points," said Krishnan Ramachandran, MD, Niva Bupa. "Key drivers are a shift in business mix-group health or B2B loss ratios are structurally higher than retail-and some uptick in retail losses."
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Business Standard
30-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Strong Q1 results, guidance lift New India Assurance shares by 18%
Shares of state-owned New India Assurance Company, the largest non-life insurer, jumped almost 18 per cent on Wednesday, aided by strong quarterly earnings and guidance from the management. The shares of New India rose by 20 per cent during the day and closed 17.7 per cent up at Rs 204.6. The insurer recorded 80 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth in net profit to Rs 391 crore in the April–June quarter of FY26 (Q1FY26), compared to Rs 217 crore in Q1FY25. Its gross written premium grew by 13.11 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 13,334 crore, while investment income rose by 23.7 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 2,290 crore. On the other hand, expenses declined by 10.25 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 11,125.01 crore. However, the loss in the Air India crash dragged the underwriting losses to Rs 1,756 crore, up from Rs 1,588 crore in Q1FY25. The company plans to focus on strengthening profitability, with a strong emphasis on launching innovative products aimed at the retail and micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) segments. During the post-earnings analyst call, the management said it aspires to achieve a 3 per cent lower combined ratio, targeting around 113 per cent in FY26. The market share of the general insurer also increased to 15.51 per cent in Q1FY26 from 14.65 per cent in Q1FY25, according to General Insurance Council data. 'The healthy growth rate in domestic business was despite lower growth in motor vehicles, where we have taken a more cautious approach considering the current competitive intensity. The combined ratio at 116.16 per cent was stable compared to the same period last year. The unfortunate incident involving the Air India flight had an adverse impact on the underwriting results. The health segment witnessed a slightly higher loss ratio, and some large losses impacted the liability and miscellaneous portfolio as well. Some more provisions were made towards legacy non-moving balances, which were offset by a healthy investment income,' said Girija Subramanian, chairperson and managing director, New India Assurance.
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Business Standard
30-07-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
New India Assurance shares jump 15% post Q1 earnings; details here
New India Assurance share price today: Shares of insurance player, New India Assurance Company, jumped over 15 per cent on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, hitting an intraday high of ₹202.50 per share. On Wednesday, shares of New India Assurance closed at ₹202.62, up 16.77 per cent on the National Stock Exchange. In comparison, Nifty50 settled at 24,855.05, up by 0.14 per cent or 33 points. Around 82 million shares had changed hands on the counter, cumulatively, on the NSE and BSE. Why New India Assurance shares were buzzing in trade today? The heavy buying on the counter came after the insurance company released its earnings for the first quarter of the financial year 2025-2026 (Q1FY26). The company's profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter ended June 30, 2025, experienced a double-digit rise of over 68 per cent to ₹392 crore as against ₹232 crore reported in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year. The company's gross written premium (GWP) increased 13 per cent to ₹13,334 crore from ₹11,788 crore recorded in the year-ago period. The insurance player's combined ratio for the quarter remained largely flat at 116.16 per cent in Q1FY26, slightly up from 116.13 per cent recorded in the same period of the last financial year. New India Assurance's overall assets under management (AUM) for the quarter under review stood at ₹1.008 trillion, up from ₹98,769 crore recorded in the same period of the last financial year. "Our market share as per the GI council statistics for the period increased from 14.65 per cent to 15.51 per cent. The healthy growth rate in domestic business was despite a lower growth in Motor LOB, where we have taken a more cautious approach considering the current competitive intensity," said Girija Subramanian, chairperson and managing director of the company. "Our focus for the remainder of FY26 will remain on further enhancing profitability, with a strong emphasis on launching innovative products aimed at the retail and MSME segments," she added. About New India Assurance Company The New India Assurance Company Ltd. is the largest general insurance company in India in terms of net worth, domestic gross direct premium and number of branches. The company was initially incorporated on July 23, 1919, in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It offers a diversified portfolio of insurance products, including fire insurance, marine insurance, motor insurance, crop insurance and health insurance.
Time of India
09-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
ET World MSME Day: How New India Assurance is charting a resilient future for MSMEs
In a virtual fireside chat on the occasion of ET World MSME Day on June 27, 2025, Girija Subramanian, Chairman and Managing Director of The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. (NIA), spoke about her company's critical role in protecting India's micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). As economic volatility, climate change, and digital transformation reshape the business landscape, NIA is responding with inclusive, tech-forward insurance solutions to ensure that MSMEs thrive. Addressing climate risk with parametric insurance One of the most pressing concerns for MSMEs today is climate risk. From floods and landslides to heatwaves and hail, unpredictable weather phenomena are impacting operations across industries. Subramanian shared that NIA has taken bold steps to address this by launching innovative products such as Nishchit Suraksha. Nishchit Suraksha offers immediate payouts based on pre-defined triggers, namely, rainfall thresholds and such as temperature spikes, without the need for traditional loss assessments. 'Unlike traditional insurance, parametric cover offers instant cash flows,' she explained. 'When a trigger is breached, a payout is made, often within hours or days. This ensures seamless business continuity and better financial resilience.' This speed and efficiency makes such products especially appealing to MSMEs that lack deep cash reserves and need quick recovery to stay afloat. The New Blueprint for Risk & Resilience | Girija Subramanian, CMD, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd Girija Subramanian, Chairman and Managing Director, The New India Assurance Co. Ltd., shared valuable insights in an exclusive fireside chat on the theme 'Future Proofing India's Small Businesses: The New Blueprint for Risk and Resilience.' She highlighted the growing shift towards AI-driven credit rules and the increasing adoption of digital lending as key trends shaping the future of MSME financing. However, she also pointed out a critical gap — the lack of awareness among MSMEs about specific insurance programs that can help them mitigate risks effectively. While the government has introduced several supportive schemes and policy reforms for MSMEs, Girija emphasized the need for greater outreach and education to ensure these benefits reach grassroots businesses. Bridging credit and insurance with embedded cover Live Events Indian MSMEs are increasingly tapping into digital lending and AI-driven credit tools. In this context, New India Assurance is eyeing partnerships with credit guarantee platforms and fintechs to offer embedded insurance. It is also exploring collaborations that bundle insurance with working capital loans. These kinds of embedded coverage, whether for liability, property, etc, ensures that MSMEs are not just financed, but protected. 'Insurance significantly reduces the risk of credit default,' Subramanian said. 'If a covered event occurs, the payout ensures business continuity and protects loan exposure.' Tackling trust and awareness deficits Subramanian acknowledged that lack of trust and awareness about numerous insurance offerings remain key hurdles for Indian MSMEs. Micro units in particular operate with limited capital and are wary of spending on insurance. It doesn't help that insurance policies for businesses are also traditionally difficult to understand. To address this, NIA has introduced customer information sheets, simplified policy language, and targeted awareness drives particularly in Gujarat, where it is the designated state insurer. 'Trust comes when customers see that claims are paid quickly and without hassles,' Subramanian stated, emphasising the role of transparency and word-of-mouth in building credibility. Segment-specific solutions NIA is also tailoring products for different sub-segments within the MSME ecosystem, such as medium enterprises. For instance, Mahila Udyam Bima offers targeted protection for women entrepreneurs. Such products are distributed through retail agents and partner networks, with the insurer actively participating in industry and government workshops to reach the last mile. 'The MSME sector contributes over 40% of India's exports and GDP. It's imperative that we create tailored underwriting models and products that match their risk profiles and scale,' Subramanian underlined. 2025 as NIA's 'Year of SME' In line with the national focus on MSMEs and the need to increase insurance penetration (which has stagnated at around 1% for years), NIA declared 2025 as its 'Year of SME'. Subramanian revealed that the company has mandated all business units to prioritise MSME clients, especially those who've never been insured before. 'It's time we look beyond the already-insured pie and focus on businesses that have stayed outside the insurance umbrella,' she said. To conclude, the ET MSME Day fireside chat underscored a critical shift: that insurance is no longer a luxury or afterthought for small businesses, but a necessity. By aligning its strategies with emerging risks, technologies, and policy reforms, NIA is helping transform India's vibrant MSME sector into a more resilient engine of growth. As Subramanian aptly concluded, 'Insurance can no longer be viewed as an optional expense. It's a strategic investment in business continuity.'
