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Showing posts with label online insurance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online insurance. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Friday, June 6, 2008
Nordic carrrier Finnair expands India services - News and Reviews
News and Reviews : With flights to India driving its growth, Nordic carrier Finnair is adding one more flight to India Saturday as it awaits permission from the government to add more destinations, in addition to Mumbai and Delhi.
“We currently operate seven flights a week to Delhi from Helsinki and five more to Mumbai. From this week, we are adding one more flight to Mumbai,” said Taina Tornstrom, the director for Indian subcontinent for the airline. “We also want to add more destinations and hope we get the permission after the next aviation pact with India,” Tornstrom told IANS, adding, Finnair’s Asian passenger traffic grew over 30 percent last year, thanks to India operations. She said the market potential in Indian was promising, as some 70 Finish firms like Nokia and industrial cranes major Kone had a major presence in the country. Likewise, Indian software giants like Infosys, Sasken and Wipro also had their bases in Finland.
Bangalore and Chennai are two cities Finnair is eyeing closely, even as it has begun to tap the growing Indian traffic to Europe and North America from India, with Helsinki as the base.
The Finnair official said the visas issued to Indians by the Finnish embassy in India had also increased from 40,000 in 2006 to around 60,000 in 2007 to reflect the growing interest in Finland here. “We have Santa. We have lakes. We have saunas. We have the reindeer. We have northern lights. The interest is really growing.”
Finnair officials said their carrier offered the shortest possible links between Europe and India, and with improved connectivity, its services between India and the US, too, has been upgraded in terms of time. “We offer the second-fastest connection between Mumbai and New York. It just takes 17 hours,” Tornstrom said. The Air India flights between the two destinations, the shortest currently, take around 15:30 hours.
More flights to Finland is indeed a good news for Indian business and leisure travellers.
News and Reviews - Travelling to Finnland?
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• Compare and Buy Indian Travel Insurance (Resident Indians only)
• Compare and Buy Schengen Visa Insurance (All Citizens upto age 99)
• Compare and Buy Global Visitors Medical Insurance (All Citizens upto age 99)
Friday, May 16, 2008
Clients cheer as insurance gets the Net edge - Economic Times
Economic Times News
MUMBAI: The benefits of de-tariffing in non-life insurance is finally trickling down to individuals. Insurance brokers have started providing aggregations services, offering quotes across a range of insurance companies to retail buyers of property, auto or health insurance. The key difference between a broker and an insurance agent is that unlike an agent, who pushes products for an insurance company, the brokers represent the customer and are expected to get their clients the best deals from across companies.
MUMBAI: The benefits of de-tariffing in non-life insurance is finally trickling down to individuals. Insurance brokers have started providing aggregations services, offering quotes across a range of insurance companies to retail buyers of property, auto or health insurance. The key difference between a broker and an insurance agent is that unlike an agent, who pushes products for an insurance company, the brokers represent the customer and are expected to get their clients the best deals from across companies.
So far, insurance brokers had been constrained by regulations that required that any person selling insurance be a fully-qualified insurance person. Also, brokers were not allowed to have sub-brokers’ selling insurance. As a result of these restrictions, brokers focused only on high-networth corporate customers. Corporates made the best of de-tariffing by playing up one insurance company against the other.
But now insurance brokers have found out that by leveraging the power of the internet, they can aggregate quotes from across companies and offer the best rates to individuals. Insurance broking firms Optima Risk Management and Bonsai Insurance Broking services have managed to tie up with insurance companies, allowing buyers to purchase cover directly over the internet. Optima offers quotes through its website click2insure.com while Bonsai’s site is http://www.insurancemall.in/.
For the consumer, what this means is s/he can purchase the cheapest health or auto insurance online in the same way s/he compares and buys air tickets online. Another silent revolution that has made this possible is the outsourcing of claims servicing by insurance companies. Both in health as well as motor insurance, companies are offering cashless servicing of claim servicing through tie-up with either third-party administrators or auto dealers.
“Involvement of the branch has gone down drastically. The location of the branch, therefore, does not matter for the customer,” said Optima Risk Management MD Rahul Aggarwal. But the cashless service has not evolved to the extent that policyholders can get service from across service providers. This means that if either the car is repaired at a not-networked workshop or the policyholder is hospitalised outside the TPA network, the documents will have to be forwarded to the policy issuing officer for reimbursement.
According to Mr Aggarwal, after the purchase, the buyer can get the receipt and proof of insurance through email almost immediately. The brokers are also able to extend the benefit of no-claim bonus based on proof of no-claim, either in the form of a renewal notice or through a letter issued by the insurer, who has issued the expiring policy.
Mr Aggarwal anticipates retail business to get much bigger than corporate business. He expects to generate a premium of Rs 500 crore from a 10-lakh customer base in the next three to five years.
With auto and health insurance dominating the non-life market and private life insurance almost doubling every year, international insurers have also started showing interest in retail. Howden India, an affiliate of the UK-based Hyperion group, has shown interest in distributing life insurance products for multiple companies in India.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Apollo DKV Health Insurance ties up with www.Insurancemall.in
New Delhi, 08 April ’08: Apollo DKV, with its vision, “To provide affordable and innovative health insurance solutions to every citizen of India and become their first-choice partner in positive health”, today announced its tie-up with Bonsai Insurance Broking Pvt. Ltd., a leading Insurance Broker in the General Insurance segment for online insurance shopping through its website http://www.insurancemall.in/. The tie-up would offer customers a comprehensive solution for purchasing health insurance products over the internet.
In its continuing endeavor to make healthcare accessible to the people of India, Apollo DKV’s strategic plan is to bring world-class insurance experience to consumers across India. This tie-up is yet another step towards offering unparalleled product range and value to its customers. The company plans to have a national presence across 25 cities by the second year of operations and spread to over 100 locations by 2010.
The tie-up will provide the common man with indigenously developed ‘quote-engines’ to compare, choose and buy Insurance online. The website also offers complete portfolio management (renewal auto-reminders to advisory) and claims assistance on policies purchased. The website endeavors to give the common Insurance buyer complete power of information and decision making.
Speaking on the tie-up, Mr. Chandrasekhar, CMO, Apollo DKV, said, “Apollo DKV is putting in a concerted effort at expanding the health insurance category and making it more affordable and accessible. Partnerships like this with Bonsai Insurance Broking for purchasing online Insurance reiterates our commitment towards the same and would enhance customer satisfaction.”
Commenting on the tie-up, Mr. Manish Jaiswal, CEO and MD, Bonsai Insurance Broking, said, “It is our pleasure to be associated with Apollo DKV a highly respected health insurance company from one of Asia’s leading healthcare group and a highly trusted brand in India. At Bonsai, we always provide exciting and interesting deals for our partners. Through this tie up we are looking at a fruitful association of building relationship with the loyal customers of Apollo DKV.”
About the promoters:
The Apollo Hospitals GroupApollo Hospitals group is a pioneer and leader in corporate healthcare in India and currently owns and manages 42 large tertiary care hospitals, 60 primary care clinics, and the largest retail pharmacy chain of over 600.
The other interests of the group include, wellness and disease management, holistic medicine, clinical research, Medical BPO, IT in health care, Medical and paramedical education and third party administration of health insurance.
Apollo Health City, Hyderabad the first functional health city in Asia, truly represents the integrated nature of the group housing under one roof.
The uniqueness of the Apollo hospitals is in uniting the exceptional clinical success rates and superior technology to match the best in the West with centuries-old traditions of Eastern care and warmth. The hospitals in the group have treated over 14 million patients from 55 countries.
Apollo Hospitals being the country’s largest provider network has excellent relations with all the insurers in India, currently underwriting health insurance and will continue its good relations with all the insurance companies as a provider of care.
DKV is the European market leader and one of the world’s top five private health insurers. In 2006 the company reached a gross premium income of € 5bn with 7.3 million customers. With its Think Healthcare!® strategy DKV provides insurance coverage, healthcare services and medical care from one single source. DKV is represented across Europe (Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, Sweden) as well as in Asia, i.e. China, South Korea and India. DKV’s headquarters are based in Cologne, Germany. The company is a member of the ERGO Insurance Group and thus part of the Munich Re Group, one of the world’s largest reinsurer. Further Information at http://www.dkv.com/
About Bonsai International Group:
Bonsai, founded in 2004 is an integrated full service financial services group of companies into Insurance Broking and Money Changing. The website is part of Bonsai’s vision to provide customers with tech-leveraged innovative solutions. Headquartered at Mumbai and offices in Bangalore and New Jersey-USA, Bonsai has served over 200000 customers in the last two years through the offline medium. More information at http://www.bonsaiinternational.com/
About InsuranceMall.in
http://www.insurancemall.in/ launched in June 2007 by Bonsai Insurance Broking Pvt. Ltd., is India’s First Neutral Insurance Shopping Website providing complete Insurance solutions claims assistance. The website endeavors to give the common Insurance buyer complete power of information and decision making while shopping for Insurance.
For more information please visit http://www.insurancemall.in/
Media Contact
Mahavir Chopra +919867594264
In its continuing endeavor to make healthcare accessible to the people of India, Apollo DKV’s strategic plan is to bring world-class insurance experience to consumers across India. This tie-up is yet another step towards offering unparalleled product range and value to its customers. The company plans to have a national presence across 25 cities by the second year of operations and spread to over 100 locations by 2010.
The tie-up will provide the common man with indigenously developed ‘quote-engines’ to compare, choose and buy Insurance online. The website also offers complete portfolio management (renewal auto-reminders to advisory) and claims assistance on policies purchased. The website endeavors to give the common Insurance buyer complete power of information and decision making.
Speaking on the tie-up, Mr. Chandrasekhar, CMO, Apollo DKV, said, “Apollo DKV is putting in a concerted effort at expanding the health insurance category and making it more affordable and accessible. Partnerships like this with Bonsai Insurance Broking for purchasing online Insurance reiterates our commitment towards the same and would enhance customer satisfaction.”
Commenting on the tie-up, Mr. Manish Jaiswal, CEO and MD, Bonsai Insurance Broking, said, “It is our pleasure to be associated with Apollo DKV a highly respected health insurance company from one of Asia’s leading healthcare group and a highly trusted brand in India. At Bonsai, we always provide exciting and interesting deals for our partners. Through this tie up we are looking at a fruitful association of building relationship with the loyal customers of Apollo DKV.”
About the promoters:
The Apollo Hospitals GroupApollo Hospitals group is a pioneer and leader in corporate healthcare in India and currently owns and manages 42 large tertiary care hospitals, 60 primary care clinics, and the largest retail pharmacy chain of over 600.
The other interests of the group include, wellness and disease management, holistic medicine, clinical research, Medical BPO, IT in health care, Medical and paramedical education and third party administration of health insurance.
Apollo Health City, Hyderabad the first functional health city in Asia, truly represents the integrated nature of the group housing under one roof.
The uniqueness of the Apollo hospitals is in uniting the exceptional clinical success rates and superior technology to match the best in the West with centuries-old traditions of Eastern care and warmth. The hospitals in the group have treated over 14 million patients from 55 countries.
Apollo Hospitals being the country’s largest provider network has excellent relations with all the insurers in India, currently underwriting health insurance and will continue its good relations with all the insurance companies as a provider of care.
DKV is the European market leader and one of the world’s top five private health insurers. In 2006 the company reached a gross premium income of € 5bn with 7.3 million customers. With its Think Healthcare!® strategy DKV provides insurance coverage, healthcare services and medical care from one single source. DKV is represented across Europe (Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, Sweden) as well as in Asia, i.e. China, South Korea and India. DKV’s headquarters are based in Cologne, Germany. The company is a member of the ERGO Insurance Group and thus part of the Munich Re Group, one of the world’s largest reinsurer. Further Information at http://www.dkv.com/
About Bonsai International Group:
Bonsai, founded in 2004 is an integrated full service financial services group of companies into Insurance Broking and Money Changing. The website is part of Bonsai’s vision to provide customers with tech-leveraged innovative solutions. Headquartered at Mumbai and offices in Bangalore and New Jersey-USA, Bonsai has served over 200000 customers in the last two years through the offline medium. More information at http://www.bonsaiinternational.com/
About InsuranceMall.in
http://www.insurancemall.in/ launched in June 2007 by Bonsai Insurance Broking Pvt. Ltd., is India’s First Neutral Insurance Shopping Website providing complete Insurance solutions claims assistance. The website endeavors to give the common Insurance buyer complete power of information and decision making while shopping for Insurance.
For more information please visit http://www.insurancemall.in/
Media Contact
Mahavir Chopra +919867594264
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Does Office Health Insurance Cover OPD or only In-Patient / Operative expenses? by Mr Chirag Patniak
I have a query on company provided medical insurance? (I've never used it so I don't know) Does this cover OPD expenses as well or only inpatient/operative expenses? Asked by Mr Chirag Patniak.
Dear Chirag :
It really depends on what kind of policy your company has taken for its staff.
Generally a large company segregates the cover benefits based on seniority or job role. Management Team in a company generally would have high coverage (any thing between Rs 2-25 Lacs Cash-less floater) with comprehensive plan including Parents.
But since Health expenses are growing in double digit now in India too, many companies prefer to cover just the immediate family and not the parents because of high Annual Premium. Also, based on negotiations an Insurance Broker does with Insurance Companies on behalf of the Corporate, Pre-Existing ailment / Maternity / OPD or Annual Health Check-up could get appended or excluded.
Remember an Insurance Plan is like an individual serving (Entrée), more items (read Risk Features) you add from the menu and more it becomes expensive.
So, essentially, it boils down to the budget a corporate allocates for Staff well-fare or in other words smart saving negotiations done by the chosen Insurance Broker from Insurance Companies on behalf of the Corporate.
I am confident, in your case, OPD / Pre-Existing and Maternity should have been covered as you belong to a big and branded Group in India.
More on these nuances of Health Insurance, its merits etc. could be read at Insurance Mall Blog. I invite you to read them for your information. Here is the link - https://www.insurancemall.in/blog/
Good Luck Chirag. You can always encourage your HR or Finance Head to take an informed decision by out-sourcing the Insurance negotiations to an able Broker this season. It does not cost a penny to the company as Brokers are paid directly by the Insurance Company. Bonsai Insurance Broking team would be more than happy to work for your group.
Buy Insurance and Stay Safe.
Cheers !!!
Manish Jaiswal
for http://www.newsandreviews.in/
Link - http://www.buynowindia.com/newsandreviews/index.php/insurance/
What is a good Policy for my parents ? Asked by Dr Sagar Bhargava
Hi ! This is Dr Sagar. My parents wish buy a Health Insurance Policy for themselves. My mother has no preexisting illness and her age is 54. My father has undergone a Bypass Surgery and is 57 yrs. Can u guide us as to which policy will cover them both for next 15 years. Thanks. Dr Sagar Bhargava.
Dear Dr Sagar :
Thanks for your mail and query. We will be glad to guide you to the best Health Policy for your parents.
Fortunately, both of them are in good age to pick the right policy but is should be bought on a yesterday basis as their age is getting into High Risk Age Zone (HRAZ). Your dad my encounter some problem as Insurance Companies don’t cover Pre-Existing disease for at least 2-4 yrs. Insurance companies are not charitable organizations, hence they are very selective in picking a risk (read providing Insurance cover) from an individual or a family. They are still lenient to cover a bad risk when it comes to Group Insurance because premium is high and Insurance works on the principle of large numbers .
I would recommend the following Insurance companies in the preference order.
I am sure, you could see them at www.InsuranceMall.in (Click & Buy at Health Insurance Options).
My colleague Mr Mahavir Chopra has written number of articles on Health Insurance. You could read them on our Insurance Blog. Quick link – https://www.insurancemall.in/blog/
Good Luck Dr Sagar. Take your choice. Buy do encourage your parents take Insurance with Critical Care ASAP.
Buy Insurance and Stay Safe.
Cheers !!!
Manish Jaiswal
for www.NewsandReviews.in
Link - http://www.buynowindia.com/newsandreviews/index.php/insurance/
Thanks for your mail and query. We will be glad to guide you to the best Health Policy for your parents.
Fortunately, both of them are in good age to pick the right policy but is should be bought on a yesterday basis as their age is getting into High Risk Age Zone (HRAZ). Your dad my encounter some problem as Insurance Companies don’t cover Pre-Existing disease for at least 2-4 yrs. Insurance companies are not charitable organizations, hence they are very selective in picking a risk (read providing Insurance cover) from an individual or a family. They are still lenient to cover a bad risk when it comes to Group Insurance because premium is high and Insurance works on the principle of large numbers .
I would recommend the following Insurance companies in the preference order.
1. Apollo DKV
2. Star Health
3. Reliance Health-wise
4. Bajaj Allianz Family Floater
5. ICICI Lombard
6. Govt. Insurance companies
I am sure, you could see them at www.InsuranceMall.in (Click & Buy at Health Insurance Options).
My colleague Mr Mahavir Chopra has written number of articles on Health Insurance. You could read them on our Insurance Blog. Quick link – https://www.insurancemall.in/blog/
Good Luck Dr Sagar. Take your choice. Buy do encourage your parents take Insurance with Critical Care ASAP.
Buy Insurance and Stay Safe.
Cheers !!!
Manish Jaiswal
for www.NewsandReviews.in
Link - http://www.buynowindia.com/newsandreviews/index.php/insurance/
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