Home ›› 08 May 2022 ›› Front
Ten firms – holding nearly 94 per cent of the life fund in Bangladesh’s insurance industry – are dominating the sector, staying ahead of the curve by providing superior customer service and settling insurance claims on time.
An analysis of the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) data shows that the sector’s life fund was Tk 35,889 crore at the end of December 2021. Among the 33 insurance firms, ten held Tk 33,671 crore in their life funds at that period.
These ten firms are – MetLife Bangladesh, National Life Insurance, Delta Life Insurance, Jiban Bima Corporation, Fareast Islami Life Insurance, Meghna Life Insurance, Popular Life Insurance, Prime Islami Life Insurance, Sandhani Life Insurance and Pragati Life Insurance.
According to IDRA data, multinational company MetLife grabbed the top position in 2021 with Tk 15,356 crore in its life fund, which is 42.78 per cent of the total figure. National Life Insurance is in second place with Tk 4,384 crore, which is 27.59 per cent.
Meanwhile, Delta Life Insurance came in third with Tk 3,834 in life fund (10.68 per cent), followed by Jiban Bima Corporation with Tk 2,304 crore (6.41per cent).
Fareast Islami Life, Meghna Life, Popular Life, Prime Islami Life, Sandhani Life and Pragati Life had Tk 1,975 crore, Tk 1,891 crore, Tk 1755 crore, Tk 809 crore, Tk 753 crore and Tk 610 crore in their life funds respectively.
A look at past 5 years
According to the annual reports of life insurance firms, the sustainability of life fund earnings has increased gradually. The life funds of all life insurance companies in 2017, 2018 and 2019 were Tk 30,887 crore, Tk 32,493 crore and Tk 34,400 crore respectively.
In 2020, the amount of life funds stood at 36,108 Tk crore, which dropped to Tk 35,889 crore at the end of 2021, marking a decrease of Tk 219 crore.Life fund is the amount that any company gets from premium earnings after paying all expenses and insurance claims. As per regulations, insurance companies have to invest 30 per cent of their life funds in government treasury bonds every year for risk management.
Insiders say the top ten companies are dominating the industry by providing superior customer service, especially by paying insurance claims on time, developing fresh products and offering modern insurance policies.
Providing more details, IDRA Executive Director and spokesperson SM Shakil Akhter said, “Some companies are doing very well because they are focusing on upholding the customers’ trust. MetLife is particularly well-reputed for their various modern policies and customer service.
“Similar to MetLife, a number of other local companies have also developed a stellar reputation among their customers. Maybe this is why they are doing pretty well in the life insurance industry.”
MetLife Bangladesh’s Head of Communications Saif Rahman said, “We are pledge-bound to serve our customers. They trust us because of our long standing track record of providing good service and keeping our promises.
“Ensuring a good business practice is helping us stay ahead of others in the life insurance industry.”
Why are others lagging behind?
Discussing the industry, National Life Insurance’s Chief Executive Officer Md Kazim Uddin said, “Achieving and maintaining public trust is the most essential component of the life insurance sector. People currently lack trust in this industry.
“The key reason behind this issue is the companies who unnecessarily delay paying insurance claims. But some firms are upholding their hard-earned reputation by paying insurance claims on time. This has helped their business get ahead of the competition.”
He continued, “The majority of life insurance companies are not paying claims. When a company refuses to fulfill ten customers’ claims, they share their negative experience with a thousand others.
“Companies upholding their reputation through good customer service are doing well, and those failing to do so are losing customer trust.”
