IRDAI Circulars

IRDAI 2024 Bima Sugam E-Insurance Rules

On 1^st March 2024, the IRDAI came up with a notification via F. No. IRDAI/Reg/5/199/2024 for Bima Sugam- Regulation on the Insurance Electronic Market is given in the online portal of IRDAI, which is https://irdai.gov.in/web/guest/document-detail?documentId=4583640. It is also stated under Section 2(2)(zd) and Section 14 and also under Section 26 clause e of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India Act of 1999 with authority with consultation and the Insurance Advisory Committee by addressing various issues with the following regulations in Bima Sugam Portal.

Insights of IRDAI- Bima Sugam E-Insurance

This particular draft for IRDAI- Bima Sugam E-Insurance can be known as the Bima Sugam- Insurance Electronic Marketplace Regulations, 2024, and can come into implementation on the date of publication in the official gazette through notification in India. The new draft deals with the Bima sugam E-insurance and also contains an objective clause which mentions the Authority to make sure and safeguard the interests of policyholders, increasing insurance penetration in India and improving accessibility, issues IRDAI Regulations 2024 for the structuring of the Digital public infrastructure which is known as the Bima Sugam- Insurance Electronic Marketplace. The foremost advantage of Bima Sugam is that it is a one-stop solution for all stakeholders or policyholders in the insurance industry, including consumers, insurers, intermediaries or insurance agents. The objective of Bima Sugam is to provide transparency and environmental efficiency, to cooperate across the whole of insurance through the value chain, technological advancement in the insurance sector, universalization and democratization of insurance and to realize the power of sight and goal of Insurance for All by 2047. It also laid down the broad principles to facilitate the operation of the company and Bima Sugam- Insurance Electronic Marketplace; the relevant authority may publish guidelines and circulars as required under these rules and regulations mentioned above, taking into account the requirements for the efficient operation of the digital marketplace for Bima sugam portal.

Terminology explained IRDAI- Bima Sugam E-Insurance.

The regulations mentioned above have defined many terms that have also been mentioned under this particular draft notification of IRDAI-Bima Sugam E-Insurance in this particular context:

Act

The meaning of this term has been defined already under the Insurance Act of 1938

Authority

The term is defined in the IRDAI (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority) Act, 1999, under Section 3 of sub-section (1).

Company

This particular term has also been meant as the company has been formed concerning Regulation- 4(a) of this above-mentioned regulation.

Consumer

This particular has been also mentioned under these regulations above as the prospect, policyholder, insured, nominee, beneficiary, and claimant about the insurance policy.

Bima-sugam- Insurance Electronic marketplace

The Marketplace, also known as the Bima Sugam Insurance Electronic Marketplace, is a strong Digital Public Infrastructure with open standards, interoperable platforms and seamless integration with different services such as purchasing, selling, servicing insurance policies, insurance claims settlement, grievance redress and other related services as allowed by the Authority.

Insurance holder

The term insurance stakeholders also includes the consumer insurers, intermediaries, insurance intermediaries, insurance agents, and Any other service providers approved by the Authority.

Company Establishment, Ownership, & Management Overview

It has been also discussed under this particular act about the establishment, shareholding and governance of the shareholding company as the legal norms and regulations to comply with in India to deal with the Bima sugam.

Shareholding and establishment

• Bima Sugam can be considered a non-profit company that was created under Section 8 of the Companies Act of 2013. It does not allow any other person to start or operate with the same or similar objectives and functions of the company.
• The main purpose of the company is to set up, manage, develop and operate the Digital Marketplace for consumers as per the provision of various services to insurance stakeholders.
• The company will file the memorandum of understanding and articles of association side by side with the relevant authority after incorporation of the particular shareholding company and also for any changes to the memorandum of understanding of the company will only be made with the approval or permission of the relevant authority.
• The shareholding company will be distributed among life insurers, general insurers, and health insurers, with no single entity controlling the stake.
• The company will not transfer, issue or transfer any shares without the earlier approval or permission of the relevant authority. The shareholders will amount to the company’s capital requirement on an ongoing or regular basis to continually upgrade and develop the Marketplace to make sure that the services are provided following the aim & objective of this particular regulation.

Governance of the company

• The Company should have well-structured policies, procedures, and essential governance arrangements approved by the board, including operational duty, risk management of the company, and internal controls for the company. The company should have up to two representatives from the IDRI on its board.
• Furthermore, to the normal functions, the board should make sure that the digital marketplace operates within the scope of these norms & regulations, that its decisions reflect the genuine and legitimate interest of insurance stakeholders, and that the systems designed have a high privacy and security level, that they are reliable, and that they have sufficient and scalable capacity. The board should also have a suitable business continuity strategy in place, taking external and internal disturbances into account.

Appointment of officials

• The Company shall apply to the Authority for authorisation to appoint, reappoint, terminate and amend the terms of appointment of the non-executive chairman, the managing director and the chief executive officer.
• The company shall appoint key managerial personnel who possess the necessary experience, combination of skills, and integrity to carry out their duties for the functioning and management of the marketplace. It shall also define the roles and duties of the management personnel.

Duties, functions and responsibilities of the company

There are some shareholder company duties, functions and responsibilities under Bima sugam.

Company and marketplace duties and roles

There are the functions of the company and the marketplace which shall include the following conditions:

• Design and implement efficient and effective digital solutions to meet the needs of its stakeholders and the relevant market.
• Design and implement a consent-based structure for its services.
• Make sure fair and open roles-based access.
• Make sure that its services are operational and available at all times.
• Make sure that it can access data providers with the appropriate consent mechanisms to store, hold, maintain, share and/or process any data according to applicable laws.
• Deliver its services following its objectives.
• Define and enforce stakeholder participation criteria, operational guidelines, and other functions as may be determined by the Authority.

Duties and responsibilities

Insurers work hard to make their products available for sale. They must regularly provide all the services associated with an insurance policy, including insurance claim settlement and grievance resolution, in the marketplace for Bima sugam.

Privacy, security & self-sustainable

There are some security as well as privacy concerns for making the Bima sugam portal safe for the companies to reach the digital insurance marketplace height.

Privacy, security and participation

• To ensure open and fair access and confidentiality by adopting best practices to address current and future security requirements.
• To ensure the adoption of appropriate security mechanisms,
• Up-To-Date Technology and Privacy Standards Participation in the marketplace is subject to compliance with the requirements and security protocols as set by the Company.

Other Miscellaneous Information

There is also other miscellaneous information regarding the stakeholder company strengthening the authority to call for the information, to carry out the inspection and enquiry, there are some of the penalties for certain violations or breaches, also various powers to issue the circulars, directions or any other guidelines to avail on the Bima sugam portal.

Authority’s Information Retrieval and Inspection Powers

The relevant authority may carry out an enquiry, investigation or examination of the books, records of the company, documents required for the company and infrastructure of the Company, as well as its systems and procedures. The Company compulsorily facilitate all obligatory documents, information and means of entry required at all times.

Sanctions for Specified Violations

The relevant authority may take the necessary legal action against the Company or the regulated entities if they fail to comply with the sections of this Regulation and the relevant sections of the Act, the IRDAI Act of 1999, and any regulations & rules sanctioned by the relevant authority regularly, including circulars, guidelines and orders on Bima sugam portal.

Authority’s Capacity to Issue Circulars, Guidelines, and Directives

The suitable authority may, where appropriate, issue circulars, instructions and directions regarding the digital marketplace and the company. The relevant authority may also sanction the required instructions to the company, built per these regulations, for the benefit of the insurance stakeholders with the Bima sugam portal.

Authority’s Remedy and Clarification Provision

To eliminate any uncertainty or difficulties that may arise when applying or interpreting any of the rules, the competent authority may provide appropriate explanations, instructions, circulars or directions as deemed necessary on the Bima sugam portal.

Conclusion

The aim of the IRDAI Regulations 2024 is to create a digital public infrastructure called Bima Sugam, to universalize and democratize insurance, strengthen and protect policyholders’ interests, and achieve the goal of Insurance for All by 2047. In the end, we can conclude that merging the six regulations has been a unified framework aimed at enabling insurers to swiftly respond to market demands. It will also lead to the advancement of insurance regulatory mechanisms for the company holders through the Bima sugam portal.

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