Owais Ayoub
Srinagar 10 December (KNB): The people from north Kashmir are suffering due to the unavailability of multiple options of insurance companies (their offices) required to ensure competitive pricing and benefits for customers while their affairs with the banks.
According to the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI), the banks should have three insurance companies providing the facilities to its customers. Even though the banks in Kashmir have provided this facility to its customers, the offices of the insurance companies, having tie up with banks, have not been established in every district. Hence the customers of banks are perforced to go for the nearby located insurance company offices only.
The availability of different insurance companies provides a choice of opting among a variety of offers while comparing its benefits and pricing. “We are not able to get benefits of competitive prices offered by the different insurance companies. Here ‘Bajaj Allianz’ is the one through which we are getting insured against any loans borrowed from J&K bank.
The offices of other tied up insurance companies of J&K bank are not in Kupwara district which cause a lot of hassle for loan borrowers,” said Mohammed Yaseen Lone, a chairman of Pic Wep NGO Karnah.
With more and more insurance companies in one area, the chances of employment generation could also pick up the pace. This can also help to curb the monopoly in a district where only one insurance company is rendering its service.
“I come under the IFFCO Tokio policy cover of J&K bank, and I was hankering for more options at the time of loan borrowing for my shop so that I would have the choice to choose among the different policy covers but was provided with an another alternative, charging high premium. Our district is also lacking the options of other insurance company offices, too,” said Showkat Ahmad Bhat, a shopkeeper of Ompura Budgam.
However, the J&K bank being the most preferred bank in Kashmir is giving the insurance cover to its customers through their only Bajaj Allianz corporate agent in North Kashmir.
While talking to Kashmir News Bureau the Private Secretary to chairman of J&K bank Karanjit Singh said that the customers are not bound to get insurance only from the bank’s corporate agent, Bajaj Allianz.
“The customers of the bank are free to get insurance cover from other companies which they found suitable,” he added.
While trying to get an answer for other unavailable tied-up insurance companies of J&K bank from Singh, he dropped the call and was continuously busy. (KNB)