New India, Reliance General lead insurance sector in FY07

Venkatachari Jagannath
15 May 2007

Chennai: The government owned New India Assurance Company Limited became the first domestic non-life insurer to cross the Rs5,000 crore gross premium income mark. Though it closed FY07 with a premium income of Rs5,024.15 crore against Rs4,791.51 crore in the previous year, yet it logged the lowest growth rate amongst government insurers with just at 4.86 per cent growth.

Out of the four government companies only United India and Oriental Insurance Company Limited (premium income Rs3,940.53 crore) logged double-digit growth last year. National Insurance Company Limited ended the year with a gross premium income of Rs3810.88 crore, representing 8.15-per cent growth.

On the other hand private sector Reliance General Insurance Company Ltd registered a stupendous growth rate of 461.96 per cent — the highest amongst the 12 non-life insurers — and earned a premium income of Rs912.23 crore. In the process it catapulted itself to the seventh rank last fiscal from twelfth in the previous year with a premium of Rs162.33 crore.

The other high growth company last year was the Chennai-based Cholamandalam MS General Insurance Company Limited that earned Rs314.59 crore and registered a growth rate of 41.57 per cent.

Bcking the growth trend was another private sector insurer, Chubb General Insurance Company Limited, which logged a negative growth of 7.59 per cent, earning Rs190.16 crore, down from Rs205.77 crore in FY06.

Apart from these, the rankings amongst the 12 non-life insurers last fiscal remained unchanged. The much expected event — ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Limited dislodging United India Insurance Company Limited from the fourth spot did not happen. United India closed the year with a gross premium of Rs3,509.95 crore leaving behind ICICI Lombard with Rs3,003.45 crore.