The sectoral regulator Irda today said it has finalised the IPO guidelines for insurance companies and has referred the same to the capital markets watchdog Sebi for final approval which is expected soon.”We are expecting the guidelines shortly. We have given our observations. The matter is currently with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi),” Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) chairman J Harinarayan told PTI.

The government will bring a bill in the monsoon session to seek Parliament’s sanction for the ordinance it issued to end the dispute between Irda and Sebi over regulation of unit-linked plans, or Ulips, of insurance companies. “The ordinance was approved at the highest level by the Cabinet and we are preparing to introduce the bill,” said a senior finance ministry official.

The government has increased the existing limit of the Employees Deposit Linked Insurance amount from Rs 60,000 to Rs 1,00,000. The amount will be paid to the next of kin of an employee in case of his death. In a notification issued on June 18, the government in the newly modifed Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance (Amendment) Scheme, 2010, said the benefits will be for employees of both the public and private sector.

The recent changes made to unit-linked insurance plans are going to pinch the agents that sell these insurance products the most.With the new cap on the charge during the term of the policy, agents are set to see a significant 500-600 basis points fall in commissions.

Introduction:IRDA has, from time to time, taken various initiatives for protecting the interests of policyholders by bringing out Regulations, Guidelines, Circulars etc applicable to insurers and intermediaries covering the various stages in the lifecycle of an insurance product, commencing from solicitation, sale, policy servicing, to claims servicing and grievance redressal.

In order to streamline the system of Issue / Renewal of License to Corporate Agents, the Authority has, in addition to the Regulations and Guidelines already in force, decided to issue the following instructions under Section 14 of the IRDA Act,

Policy holders of Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIPs), who wish to pre-maturely withdraw, can now be glad as their investment will soon have some protection. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) are planning to limit cut in yield from the 6th year (of the policy) beyond, according to reliable sources.

Limitation period means the time within which a person must file his case before a judicial authority for exercising his rights. This period is to be calculated from the date of the cause of action. This term does not have any definition, but it is well settled that “cause of action” is a mixed question of fact and law. It has consistently been held that for insurance disputes, the cause of action starts from the date of rejection of the claim.

The tug of regulatory war over unit linked insurance plans (ULIPs) has ended with regulatory regime to be retained with insurance regulatory body (IRDA). The Central Government has promulgated an Ordinance (legislation) to the effect that ULIPs shall be regulated by IRDA only, thus ending the ongoing claims by both regulators- SEBI and IRDA to regulate the ULIP schemes.

After winning the turf war with market watchdog Sebi on ULIPs, insurance regulator Irda on Monday said it would frame new guidelines for these products to make them more attractive for policy holders. “Certainly, yes,” Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority chairman J Hari Narayan told PTI when asked whether the insurance regulator would unveil new guidelines for unit-linked insurance policies to make them attractive for investors.