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Informist, Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025

MUMBAI – Indian general insurance companies believe the government should consider making catastrophe insurance mandatory, as the effects of climate change have become increasingly severe in recent years. Several developed countries like France, Spain, and New Zealand have already mandated at least basic natural catastrophe coverage.

Catastrophe insurance provides protection for businesses and households against natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes, as well as human-made events like riots or terrorist attacks. A plain vanilla home insurance policy typically does not cover these low-probability, high-cost events.

Even insurance coverage against cyber fraud has become crucial in today's environment, according to top executives from India's leading general insurance companies who spoke in a panel discussion at Business Standard's BFSI Insight Summit. The panel included SBI General Insurance Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Navin Chandra Jha, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance MD and CEO Anup Bagchi, Bajaj General Insurance MD CEO Tapan Singhel, and PB Fintech Co-Founder Yashish Dahiya.

However, catastrophe insurance remains a slightly far-fetched reality in India, where even basic life and health insurance products have yet to achieve significant market penetration. The government expects insurance coverage to expand as they become more affordable after the goods and services tax rate on premiums on health and term insurance was slashed to nil.

While the tax cut may require insurers to compromise on the input tax credit, general insurance companies believe they can absorb the impact on their bottom line. They expect increased affordability will drive higher sales, boosting revenue, and offsetting the additional costs, the general insurers mentioned and agreed.  End

Reported by Krity Ambey and Sagar Sen

Edited by Subhojit Sarkar

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