Indian insurers to up IT spending in 2011: Gartner

As per Gartner, the market analyst firm, Indian insurers are expected to spend $1.8bn on IT products and services this fiscal, an increase of 11.7% over last year. Insurers in India had spent $1.6bn on such services in 2010-11.

This clearly indicates that Indian insurers are finally opening up to technology and adopting it more openly in an effort to drive efficiency across the insurance business value chain. Evolving regulatory changes, volatile economic conditions and catastrophic events are compelling insurers to streamline and apply more thought to their business processes.

Health Insurance Portability in India finally sees daylight

The scheme was proposed to come into force from July 1 earlier, but was deferred for three months due to certain outstanding issues with insurance companies.

Health portability will allow consumers to change their service provider without losing the basic coverage of health insurance. As per portability rules, consumers will get credit for the time already spent for covering the pre-existing disease along with bonus accrued to him from his past insurer.

However, health insurance portability will be limited to non-life insurers, which will allow policy switch with respect to all individual policies, including family floater policies.

Even individual members, including the family members covered under group health insurance policy of a non-life insurer, will be able to migrate from a group health policy to an individual policy or a family floater with the same insurer.