The life insurance industry has started the financial year on a positive note and registered a growth of 8 percent in the first year business premium collection. The life insurance industry collected Rs 2,238 crore in April 2009 compared with Rs 2,073 crore during the same period last year. These figures represent premium collection from individual and group (single and non-single) policies.

The private sector comprising 21 companies mopped up Rs 1,346.07 crore in April”growth of 4.25 percent. Together they had collected Rs 1,291.07 crore during the same period last year. The Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) on the other hand registered a growth of 14 percent in its premium collections at Rs 892.24 crore. It had garnered Rs 781.97 crore during the same period last year.

SBI Life was the biggest gainer with a 246 percent rise in its premium collection. Max New York Life and LIC followed this. Both the companies booked 23 and 14 percent growth in the premium collection respectively. The biggest losers were Met Life, ICICI Prudential Life and Tata AIG. Premium collection for these companies nose-dived by 77 percent, 60 percent and 48 percent respectively.

However, these figures paint a different picture if we take into account policies sold to individuals only. The industry continues to reel under pressure as the premium collection plummeted by 14 percent. All the 22 life insurance companies together collected Rs 1,686 crore compared with Rs 1,960 crore during the same period last year. Of this, the private sector collected Rs 886 crore registering a drop of 26 percent in its premium collections from last year. The lone state-run behemoth mopped up Rs 799 crore — a growth of 4 percent from last year.