Life insurance in India today is different from the days her economic prosperity started. In those days, only one company ruled the roost where insurance policies were concerned- Life Insurance Corporation of India, or LIC as you might know it.
As a result, people did not have much choice but to buy only a ‘policy’, as any product of LIC was colloquially called. But today, everywhere your eyes lay to rest, you will find an insurance selling company of some scale.
Best Life Insurance Companies in India
There are a plethora of Life Insurance companies in India offering a wide range of insurance policies and plans to individuals, groups, companies, and families to choose from and benefit from. Many of the best life insurance companies in India have a strong hold on the market, with LIC leading. People will choose insurance policies from the best life insurance companies that hold the best features and that will benefit them the most at a reasonable price.
| Life Insurance Companies | Death Claim Received | Death Claim Process | Death Claim Pending |
| TATA AIA Insurance | 2707 | 2599 | Nill |
| ICICI Pru Life Insurance | 10901 | 10539 | 0.33% |
| Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance | 16239 | 14887 | 0.39% |
| HDFC Life Insurance | 12724 | 12421 | 0.46 |
| LIC Life Insurance | 769386 | 756399 | 0.42% |
Here is the overview of above best life insurance companies in India:
1. TATA AIA Life Insurance Company
The name TATA is enough to set the trust factor rolling. Being one of the biggest homegrown companies in the world, TATA was sure to come up with some quality products when it joined hands with American International Group to make its mark in the insurance world.
TATA AIA has largely become one of the favorites among life insurance companies in India. With three policies to choose from, the policies of this company are diverse enough to cater to the needs of many types of families.
The claim settlement ratio of 96.80%, while having room to improve, is still very commendable compared to the three-fourths of companies that won’t make this list. 100% of all grievances were settled in their last working year.
2. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company
ICICI has been a top and trusted name in the banking world, where people have been choosing to pay higher starting deposits to open accounts rather than opting for cheaper local banks. And for a good reason too, ICICI monetary services bring a level of trust no other bank in India has mustered yet. It should be no surprise then that it is regarded as one of the best life insurance companies in India.
From various traditional products to ULIP products, ICICI Pru has plans that are chiseled to fit exactly the person applying for their services. There are various benefits attached to each plan too. With a claim settlement ratio of 96.3%, you can be sure you are putting your money in the right hands.
3. Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company
A joint venture between another homegrown behemoth Bajaj and a European finance company Allianz SE, Bajaj Allianz is one of the prime suppliers of insurance in this country.
The company has gained the favor and trust of people for giving uniquely convenient life insurance plans– for example, one life insurance plan even pays your pending loans after your death.
The claim settlement ratio has some room for improvement- 91.30% in the last year is not the best, but still really good. It has a 99.90% grievances settlement ratio in the last year too. You are being promised Rs 1cr of cover for paying only Rs 18/day. Even policies by some huge companies tend to max out at Rs 50 lakhs for similar premium payments.
4. HDFC Life Insurance Company
When India’s largest housing finance company- HDFC Ltd ventures into life insurance, we know something big and reliable is going to come out of it. Its merger company, Standard Life, is also very renowned worldwide.
One great thing about HDFC life insurance policies is- while the lowest sum assured is set to Rs 25 Lakhs, the highest sum assured you can buy is totally up to you as long as you can pay your premiums.
With an amazing claim settlement ratio of 95.2% and 99.38% of grievances settled in the past year, there is no doubt the company is flourishing due to its policy of customer satisfaction.
5. Life Insurance Corporation of India
Who can forget LIC, the oldest, time-tested life insurance company in India? To this day, the biggest selling point of this company remains the trust factor. Generations after generations have made it a family tradition to buy this policy.
Over time, people have argued that the plan fails compared to the newer plans available. But, with a claim settlement ratio of 98.3% and 100% grievance settlement, the policy can be bought for trust alone.
While the best life insurance companies in India aren’t restricted to this list, if you’re feeling lazy about buying life insurance, you can take the people’s word on buying policies from these companies.
Also Read: Life Insurance Companies in India with Claim Settlements
Best Life Insurance Companies in India with Claim Settlement Ratio (2024)
| Life Insurance Companies | Claim Settlement Ratio (2019-20) |
| Life Insurance Corporation of India | 98.31% |
| SBI Life Insurance | 96.69% |
| ICICI Prudential Life Insurance | 96.69% |
| HDFC Life Insurance | 97.62% |
| Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance | 91.67% |
| Max Life Insurance | 97.81% |
| Birla Sun Life Insurance | 94.69% |
| Kotak Life Insurance | 91.24% |
| Reliance Nippon Life Insurance | 94.53% |
| India First Life Insurance | 82.65% |
5 Best Features of Life Insurance Companies in India
1. Allows Free–Look Period
The best life insurance companies in India offer their policyholders a free–look period with their insurance policies. If you take up an insurance policy and you find out that it does not appeal to you the way that you had expected it would and it certainly is not fulfilling your needs or the requirements of your family, the best life insurance companies in India offer you a golden chance to drop the insurance plan and it will not even cost you any money.
Policies offer the policy bearers an option of dropping the insurance plan during a period called the free look period which will not cost any extra money. It is a great way to first – hand experience an insurance plan and see if it would benefit you. But, you need to make sure you are aware of the period so that you can easily leave the insurance policy within the prescribed period. The free look period is usually for 15 days within which the policyholder can leave the plan. The insured can test their insurance policy.
This is a great option as you can assess yourself if the plan will suit your needs or not. But, if you drop it after the 15-day mark, then it might cost you some rupees, depending on the plan and the company.
2. Grace Period for Premiums
Many times, it happens that the policyholder is not able to make the payments for the premiums on time due to internal or external environmental or personal reasons, issues, or distractions. This messes with the policy. But, many of the best life insurance companies in India offer a grace period.
A grace period is a duration or a period within which the policyholder is given a chance to pay up all the premiums that they had not, earlier, and are due. Many policies by the best life insurance companies in India offer this grace period within which, if the due premiums are paid off, the policy will start functioning as usual.
Some companies even offer a policy revive, which means that if a policyholder is not able to pay the due premiums even during the grace period and the policy lapses, they still have a chance to revive it by duly paying the premiums within a few years of the date of the non – payment.
3. Extra Benefits if Accidental Death
Some of the best life insurance companies in India provide an extra benefit along with the usual benefit cover which is given to the family or the nominees of the insured in case the death of the policyholder has occurred due to any accidents. When the insured unfortunately demises due to accidental reasons, a death benefit is as usual paid to their nominees or their family members and an accidental death benefit is also paid. The amount of the accidental death benefit is equivalent to the amount of the basic sum assured.
So, when the insured dies, their nominees are given the basic sum assured of the policy as well as the accidental benefit. Some insurance companies have insurance policies that will provide this extra benefit at an extra cost, that is, the policyholder might have to avail a rider with an extra premium amount so that their family can get that extra benefit in such unfortunate cases. But, the best life insurance companies in India will provide this as a part of the basic insurance plan itself.
4. Maturity Benefits
The best life insurance companies in India give a maturity benefit as well with their term or life insurance policies. Many of the policies only give out a benefit or sum assured cover on the death of the policyholder and no payments are made if the insured survives after the insurance policy matures but the insurance plans and policies offered by the best life insurance companies in India do provide, both the maturity benefit as well as the death benefit. If the policyholder lives through the entire tenure of the insurance policy and has not made claims throughout the term (if applicable, depending on the type of policy), then they get the amount of the sum assured as a maturity benefit.
5. Tax Benefits
The best life insurance companies in India offer many tax benefits and deductions with their insurance plans and policies. Many plans allow loans to be taken up against the insurance policy and most of them have the loans as tax-free. The death benefits are also tax-free. Tax deductions and benefits make the policies highly worthy as the whole amount will be invested and the whole amount would be received during benefits.
Also Read: Top 10 Best Life Insurance Plans in India
Conclusion
Invest in the best life insurance companies in India and get all the above benefits and features to only gain from. The best life insurance companies in India will automatically provide the best insurance plans and policies with great coverage.
