Date:16/11/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/11/16/stories/2005111606220600.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

LIC the best-known Indian brand: Chidambaram

Staff Reporter

Corporation's e-portal boasts of many unique features

FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH: Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram launching LIC 's web portal in Chennai on Tuesday. Others from left are D.K. Mehotra, Managing Director, LIC, and A.K. Shukla, Chairman. — Photo: Shaju John

CHENNAI: Describing Life Insurance Corporation of India as the best-known Indian brand, Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, said on Tuesday that even after the opening up of the insurance sector to private firms, the Corporation remained the market leader.

Launching LIC's e-portal here, he said the Corporation "supported us (government) when we opened up insurance because it was confident of doing better in a competitive environment. LIC continues to be the market leader with 88 per cent market share of new policies and 78 per cent of premium. It is clearly recognised as the market leader."

The e-portal (licindia.com) will provide information on policy status, bonus, premium payment, loans and change of address. It will facilitate online payment of premium and has details of the doctors and agents. It also has a branch locator and `maturity alert' facility. The objective is to provide world-class service.

Noting that the State-owned Corporation utilised information technology in its relentless effort to remain the leader, Mr. Chidambaram said: "My goal is to make LIC a world class insurance company. It is nearly world class now." All 2,048 branches of LIC, which had been adjudged the best user of IT by NASSCOM, were fully automated. Barring ten, all the branches were networked.

Mr. Chidambaram said the e-portal was another example of LIC's constant innovation using information technology. Some of the multi-interfaces it offered to customers included call centres, IVRS, SMS and satellite branches.

Bonus rates

Announcing the bonus rates on LIC policies, Mr. Chidambaram said on Whole Life policies it would be Rs. 71 (per Rs. 1,000 sum assured). On endowment policies the bonus ranges from Rs. 34 to Rs. 50. It will be between Rs. 32 and Rs. 45 on money-back policies.

The bonus for Jeevan Dhara and Jeevan Suraksha schemes has been enhanced and the terminal bonus retained at last year's level. The bonus is in addition to the special bonus announced during the golden jubilee celebrations of LIC in September.

LIC Chairman A.K. Shukla said the Corporation catered to 18 crore policy holders and the size of the life fund had crossed Rs. 3.85 lakh crores.

Stating that LIC believed in deploying the latest technology for the benefit of all concerned, he said the portal would enable customers to access a range of services from the comfort of their home.

K. Sridhar, managing director of LIC, said: "Better servicing alone can give us new business."