Aatur Thakkar, Director, Alliance Insurance Brokers

18 Feb 2022 , 05:39 PM

In an interaction with Mamta Maity, indiainfoline.com, Mr. Aatur Thakkar – Director – Alliance Insurance Brokers Pvt. Ltd. said “the business leverages strategic partnerships (at no cost) with leading corporates in India allowing their employees an all-access pass to the exclusive plans and discounts available on Elephant.in.”

Tell us your present business undertaken by Elephant insurance

Elephant.in is India’s first fully digital Insurtech consulting and advisory platform for corporate employees. It was built with a vision to enable every corporate employee in the country to be able to purchase superior curated insurance products at premiums lower than open market without having to compromise on the benefits/coverage. In fact, in most instances, the benefits/coverage have only been increased for the benefit of corporate employees. The business leverages strategic partnerships (at no cost) with leading corporates in India allowing their employees an all-access pass to the exclusive plans and discounts available on Elephant.in. Employees can benefit from consulting and advisory services are available from certified insurance experts present in our advisory panel as well as enjoy best-in-class claims assistance by our servicing team for any post-purchase engagements.

How many clients have you partnered with?

So far, we have partnered with over 250+ corporates and are servicing over 10 lakh corporate employees on their unique insurance needs. This is a growing number as Elephant.in has gained a lot of popularity momentum among our clients’ employees in recent months.

What kind of insurance products are offered for employees?

Elephant.in not only has products across all the popular insurance categories like Motor, Health, Life, Travel, etc. but also has brought forth new breeds of consumer insurance products such as Bundled Home Insurance (Self-owned as well as Renters Insurance) and Cyber Protect Insurance, which have never been marketed in the Indian market before by any online platforms at scale. These products hosted on Elephant.in are also far more superior as compared to similar (over the counter) products available in consumer insurance platforms (like aggregators). These products have been specifically curated by select handpicked insurers to cater to the dynamic needs of corporate employees.

How it is beneficial for employees as well as employers.

From an employee standpoint, Elephant.in acts as a personal insurance advisor who will handhold the employee through various insurance plans and help them make an informed decision on what is the right insurance for their unique requirement. Furthermore, after the purchase of any product, the employee becomes a lifetime customer to Elephant.in i.e. the employee will be able to leverage Elephant.in for the rest of their lives at no additional costs/charges. In the event of a claim or any other servicing request, the employee can also seek guidance and support from a full-fledged servicing team for smooth and hassle-free processing of the request. On the employer’s end, we offer no-cost partnerships so they can add Elephant. into their bouquet of employee benefits and hence, allow their employees to take command of their insurance portfolio by leveraging the exclusive deals & services offered on the platform.

Outreach in every city due to the digital+ physical- Phygital model.

We are currently focused on Tier 1 &Tier 2 cities when it comes to partnerships with corporate houses, and looking to expand further into Tier 3 & Tier 4 within the next 6-12 months. Given the product is completely digital (available on both- web & mobile), the business does not hold a physical/phygital model dependency from a pre-sales point of view. However, for any post-sales services, the employee can reach out to their Relationship Manager to get an overall experience of a Phygital model. The online portal can carry the entire journey of an employee – from the start (comparing insurance plans before purchase) to the end (claims servicing after purchasing the insurance) as well.

Could you tell us the insurance sector outlook for FY22?

After the covid pandemic, the demand for life and health insurance policies has gone up significantly. People are voluntarily investing in insurance plans, and insurance has become a pull product from a push product. The demand for insurance will be consistent in 2022, especially in the health and life insurance categories. The Indian insurance sector has historically witnessed growth between 12 and 15 percent over a five-to-six-year time horizon.

While the last 18 months have been majorly focused on the pandemic, the Indian insurance industry is expected to focus more on the growth story going forward. Increased awareness, emergence of ecosystems, allowing digitalized payments, and overall digital enablement will all contribute to the growth story. Consolidation, perhaps an increase in foreign capital, technology, and big data, as well as solvency and reporting, will be the large topics. And yes, digital will play a major role as consumers are taking the digital route in insurance, the buying and purchasing trends will change further. Customers will adopt digital methods to buy value-based personalized products.