List of Top 10 Life Insurance Companies in India: Our lives are riddled with uncertainty. Despite being on terms with this fact we still do our best to predict the foreseeable future and live with the assumption that we can foresee ourselves growing old with our loved ones. The only things we can focus on is the immediate present where we do our best to create a safety net if not for us then at least for our loved ones which would better enable them to deal with an unpleasant situation.

One such way of trying to manage such an unforeseeable future has been life insurance. The basic premise of a life insurance policy is that in the situation of your demise the insurance company you have a policy with will pay your family a certain sum of money agreed upon in the policy.  Today, we take a look at the Top 10 Life Insurance Companies in India. Here, we rank the top 10 life insurances in India in order to give you a better outlook at the top companies in the industry.

Top 10 Life Insurance Companies in India

The insurance industry of India has 57 insurance companies – 24 of which are life insurance. The following are the top 10 life insurance companies in India.

1. LIC – Life Insurance Corporation of India

LIC is the largest life insurance company in India is the only public company out of the 24 life insurers present in the Indian market. The government entity came into existence in the year 1956 is also one of the oldest insurance companies in India. The company is famous for its slogan “Zindagi Ke Saath Bhi, Zindagi Ke Baad Bhi”.

The company’s main strength lies in the trust it has among Indians due to its well-established presence for over half a century and also because of it being a government entity.  LIC’s total asset under management is Rs. 3,111,847 crores (USD 450 billion). The claim settlement ratio of the life insurance policy of this company is 97.79%. LIC has so far secured over 250 million life insurance solutions.

Also read: LIC IPO 2020 – Are You Ready? | Expected IPO Dates & Details

2. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company was founded in the year 2000 and since then has maintained its status as one of the most extensively recognized insurance companies in the country. The insurance company is a joint venture between ICICI bank Prudential Corporation Holdings Limited. ICICI Bank holds a 74% stakeholding and Prudential Plc holds a 26% stake in the venture. Its customer-centric approach and strong bancassurance and distribution channels have made it the second-best insurance company in the country. The Total Assets Under Management of the company are Rs. 1,604.10 billion. The company has a Claim Settlement Ratio of 98.58%.

3. HDFC Standard Life Insurance

HDFC Standard Life Insurance company is a joint venture between HDFC Ltd, India’s biggest financial institution, and Standard Life Aberdeen, a global investment company. The company was founded in the year 2000 and went on to become one of the most reputed life insurance providers in the country. HDFC Life makes its services accessible easily to the customers through its 412 branches along with its strong digital platform. The claim settlement ratio of HDFC Standard Life Insurance is 99.04%.

4. Max Life Insurance

Max Life Insurance Company founded in the year 2000. The insurance company is a joint venture between Indian Max India Ltd, and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company, a Japanese Insurance Company. Max Life Insurance Company is the largest non-bank private sector insurance company in India. One of the major reasons for its success has been the very low premium its offers making it one of the best policies in India. The company has an asset under management crossing Rs. 50,000 crores. With its high-quality customer service through its strong online presence, a wide portfolio of products, multi-distribution channels, and 1090 offices across the country, the company has accumulated a customer base of more than 30 lakhs. The claim settlement ratio of Max Life Insurance Company is 98.74%.

5. SBI Life Insurance

SBI Life Insurance is a joint venture between India’s largest bank – State Bank of India and the leading global insurance company BNP Paribas Cardiff a French multinational bank and financial services company. It was founded in the year 2001 and is well-known insurance in the country. SBI Life Insurance has an authorized capital of USD 290 million. SBI Life Insurance Company has a claim settlement ratio of 95.03%. 

6. Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company founded in the year 2001. The company joint venture between Bajaj Finserv Limited of Bajaj Group and Allianz SE a German company. The company is popular for its innovative products and timely customer survive provided through its 759 branches across the country.  The Claim Settlement Ratio of this life insurance company is 95.01%.

7. Tata AIA Life Insurance

Tata AIA Life Insurance Company is a joint venture between Tata Sons Private Limited and AIA Group Limited- Asia’s largest insurance group. The company’s strengths have been in Tata’s established position as a reliable brand in the Indian market along with AIA being the largest independent insurance group in the world crossing 18 markets in the Asia Pacific. Tata AIA Life Insurance Company’s asset under management in 2019 is Rs.28,430 crores. The Claim Settlement Ratio of this life insurance company is 98%.

8. Reliance Nippon Life Insurance

Reliance Nippon Life Insurance Company is a joint venture between Reliance Capital and Nippon Life the largest Japanese Life insurance company. The company was founded in 2001 as a Reliance Life Insurance Company. In 2006 Nippon Life went on to acquire a 26% share in the company. In 2011 Nippon went ahead to again acquire an additional stake in the company making it the majority shareholder at 75%. The company has a strong distribution network of 727 branches across the country. Reliance Nippon has assets under management is Rs.20,281 Cr and a Claim Settlement Ratio of 99.07%.

9. Bharti AXA Life Insurance

Bharti AXA Life Insurance is a  joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and AXA Group – a French multinational insurance firm. The company was founded in the year 2006 and since then has developed a distribution network across 123 cities and has a customer base of more than 1 million. The company has a claim settlement ratio of 97.28%. 

10. Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance

Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance Company was founded in the year 2000. The company is a joint venture between Aditya Birla Group and Sun Life Financial a Canadian financial services organization. The company has its presence across the country with 425 branches and 9 bancassurance partners. The company has a Claim Settlement Ratio of Birla Sun Life Insurance Company is 97.15%.

Closing Thoughts

Life insurance policies over time have also evolved to plan for unforeseen and upcoming expenses for eg. the Unit Linked Insurance Plans that provide returns through investment in the market. However, insurances although a financial decision cannot be entirely looked at from a financial perspective. This is because they are mainly emotional decisions. But still crores of people opt for insurances for reasons that are difficult to express.

The investment comes with the realization that it is not about an individual’s life but about his family. Life insurances would give the already distraught family the financial assistance when they need it the most which also allows them to buy time rather than look for other financial means right away. 

Aron Almeida

Aron, Bachelors in Commerce from Mangalore University, entered the world of Equity research to explore his interests in financial markets. Outside of work, you can catch him binging on a show, supporting RCB, and dreaming of visiting Kasol soon. He also believes that eating kid’s ice-cream is the best way to teach them taxes.