Insurance money worth Rs. 15,167cr lying unclaimed with firms
Twenty-three life insurers in India are sitting on unclaimed insurance money of as much as Rs. 15,167cr, with Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) accounting for the lion's share. As of March 31, 2018, LIC possessed Rs. 10,509cr of unclaimed money, showed data by regulatory body IRDA (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India). Twenty-two private insurers account for the remaining Rs. 4,657.45cr.
These make up the rest of the companies
Among these 22, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. has the largest share of unclaimed insurance money - Rs. 807.4cr. It is followed by Nippon Life Insurance (Rs. 696.12cr), SBI Life Insurance Co. (Rs.678.59cr) and HDFC Standard Life Insurance Co. (Rs. 659.3cr).
IRDA asks insurers to ensure disbursal of claims
IRDA has directed insurers to take steps to ensure the beneficiaries are soon identified and the money is swiftly disbursed. Among suggested measures, it has asked companies to provide a search facility on their website to enable policyholders to find out if any amount is due to them. Companies also have to upload information on unclaimed amounts on their website every six months.
How can you claim your insurance money?
To find out if you have some unclaimed amount, you will have to submit details like your name, date of birth and PAN, along with policy number, in a space given on the insurer's website. Aadhaar will be mandatory in most cases.
