09/10/2013
IRDA launches Insurance Repository System, the first of its kind in the World (FREE OF COST)
Insurance Repository system for individual policy holders is a pioneering initiative of India’s Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), the first of its kind in the world, as part of its efforts to improve services to policy holders and Insurance pe*******on. Insurance Repository system will enable policy holders to buy and keep insurance policies in dematerialized or electronic form (e-Policies). e-Policies will eliminate paper and associated risks of storage and loss and provide convenience and safety to the customer.
It will also make it a economical preposition for Insurance companies to issue and service e policies as compared to traditional paper policies. This reduced cost will make lower ticket policies much more viable and is expected to give a further boost to greater pe*******on of insurance in India.
IRDA has licensed five entities – NSDL Database Management Ltd., Central Insurance Repository Ltd., SHCIL Projects Ltd., Karvy Insurance Repository Ltd., and CAMS Repository Services Ltd. – to act as Insurance Repositories (IRs). The IRs will also act as a single point of service for all e Policies held by a policy holder, making it convenient for policy holders to get service on demand. All the Repositories will be directly regulated by IRDA
A policy holder needs to open an e Insurance Account (eIA) with an Insurance Repository to be able to buy and keep policies issued by various insurers in electronic mode – be it life, pension, health or general. This account opening is free of cost to the account holder. An Individual can have only one e IA and he will get a unique e Insurance Account number. Once an e IA is opened, a policy holder can keep all his e policies, both life and general, issued by various Insurers, under this single account. Initially, this facility is launched for life insurance policies which are of long term nature.
A policy holder can also convert existing policies (in paper form) into electronic form by submitting a request for conversion after opening an e IA. Once a person has an e-IA, he doesn’t have to go through the KYC process every time he buys a new insurance policy. Further, any changes to personal details like address can be effected through a single request to the Repository.