Escape From Premium Spike

Every July, Vaibhav Shah, 37, from Ahmedabad, renews his family floater health insurance plan without fail. This year he is in for a shock. The plan, which also covers his elderly parents and usually costs him a premium of Rs 24,541, has become 50 per cent costlier. The media is abuzz with reports on how most general and health insurers have increased premium costs. In some cases, this hike was reported to be 100-200 per cent. “The average hike in the health insurance premium cost on renewal has been observed to be around 10 to 40 per cent, depending on the coverage and sum assured,” says Rakesh Goyal, Director, Probus Insurance, Insurtech Broking Company. “However, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) has stated that the standalone and non-life insurers were allowed to alter the base premium by either plus or minus 5 per cent of the originally...