New Delhi, Delhi, India: Airtel Payments Bank, India’s first Payments Bank, and HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company, India’s leading private sector general insurance company, under the corporate agency tie-up launched an innovative Mosquito Diseases Protection Policy (MDPP) as a part of their objective to drive insurance adoption in the country through affordable and easily accessible products.
The partnership aims to bring together the deep distribution network of Airtel Payments Bank and the strong innovation pipeline of HDFC ERGO to contribute to financial inclusion in the country.
Mosquito Disease Protection Policy offers cover against seven common mosquito-borne diseases – Dengue, Malaria, Chikungunya, Japanese Encephalitis, Kala-azar, Lymphatic Filariasis (Elephantiasis) and Zika virus. The product, which is a part of the ‘Wallet Insurance Portfolio’ of HDFC ERGO, will be offered to the remittance customers of Airtel Payments Bank at a nominal cost of Rs. 99 per annum.
Designed after extensive consumer research, the policy is currently available to the over 4 million remittance customers of Airtel Payments Bank. This segment of customers mostly comprises of migrant workers, who usually are the lone breadwinners of the family, and even a single day’s pay or wage loss impacts them in a big way.
The policy offers financial security for loss of pay or loss of savings in case of hospitalisation due to any of the above mentioned diseases. This pocket friendly product stands apart in the industry by being the only policy offering the sum assured benefit to the insured even if he/she is hospitalised for 24 hours for treatment.
Mr. Anubrata Biswas, MD and CEO, Airtel Payments Bank said, “We are delighted to offer an affordable innovative insurance product, customizing it to the end customer’s requirements. Through this product construct we aim to introduce easy and sachet size paperless insurance solutions to millions of customers spread across the nation. This association is an important step in our journey towards building a comprehensive product portfolio customized to each segment for a financially inclusive society.”
Commenting on the partnership with Airtel Payments Bank, Mr. Anuj Tyagi, Executive Director & Chief Business Officer, HDFC ERGO General Insurance said, “HDFC ERGO is committed to bring innovative and relevant products to the insurance buyers. Our PING group (Providing Insurance for Next Generation) has been developing products under the umbrella of ‘Wallet Products Portfolio’. In our assessment, wallet products will change the way customer perceive or buying insurance products. These are low ticket, extremely relevant products which provide ease of buying, simplicity of coverages and simplest claim procedures, thereby providing maximum value to the insured. In our opinion, these products would also prove to be very efficient in creating awareness about the insurance products, since these are simple and insured can connect with these products, immediately.
Airtel Payments Bank provides us in-roads to offer innovative products through their enormous and spirited distribution platform. Since, the Mosquito Disease Protection cover is a wallet product, it will ride on the strength of a digital sales channel for a seamless and smooth buying experience to the customer and in Airtel Payment Bank, we have a partner whose core distribution and service model is based on digital platform, thereby it makes it a special partnership of like-minded corporates. We are confident that the combined strength of our brands will draw great appreciation amongst their wide and rich contactable customer base. Through this partnership HDFC ERGO is yet again enforcing our commitment of reaching out to customers’ and making our products available to all possible sections of the society.”
Airtel Payments Bank’s distribution network comprises of 500,000 neighbourhood banking points that reach even the remotest rural pockets and improve access to formal banking and financial products.
