Irda tightens advertising norms for life insurers

NEW DELHI: Insurance regulator Irda has tightened advertising norms for life insurers asking them not to offer any awards or reward points as inducement to lure customers.

"...in order to enhance the extant transparency of the insurance advertisements, and to improve compliance...life insurance advertisements should not offer, as inducement, any award/reward points, discounts and rebates, except those approved by the Authority as part of product features," the Insurance Regulatory Authority of India has said.

Irda said a review of the advertisements, especially Internet advertisements, revealed the necessity to improve the compliance.

Irda also observed a trend of advertisements showing the combination of benefits of more than one product, it said.

It further asked life insurers for a complete disclosure of all related particulars of an individual product, where more than one product and combination of their benefits were being offered in a single advertisement.

"Such advertisements should contain a specific declaration as 'Advertisement Disclaimer' on Top in BOLD (not less than Font size 7)," it added.