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What Does the IRDAI Annual Report 2024-25 Say About Premiums, Claims and Complaints?
Download the IRDAI Annual Report 2024-25 (PDF, 12.2 MB). It is the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India's statutory report on the year from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025, posted on IRDAI's annual reports page dated 30 December 2025 [1]. One 416-page file holds both languages: Hindi first, then the English report from PDF page 209. The numbers most people open it for are on a handful of pages. Total premium was ₹11,93,444 crore [1], penetration stayed at 3.7% of GDP [1], and health insurance premium reached ₹1,17,505 crore [1]. Complaints went up: 2,57,790 grievances reached IRDAI's Bima Bharosa portal, against 2,15,569 a year earlier [1].
Document details
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Issued by | Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), Hyderabad |
| Document | IRDAI Annual Report 2024-25, prepared under the IRDA (Annual Report - Furnishing of Return, Statements and Other Particulars) Rules, 2000 [1] |
| Period covered | 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 |
| Date on IRDAI site | 30 December 2025 [1] |
| Pages | 416 in one PDF: Hindi on PDF pages 1-208, English on 209-416. Printed page N of the English report is PDF page N + 232 |
| Our copy | IRDAI Annual Report 2024-25 (PDF, 12.2 MB), unchanged |
| Official source | irdai.gov.in, Annual Reports |
| What it is for | The regulator's yearly account to Parliament of the insurance market, its own policy work, grievances and finances |
1. What is in the report
The file is long because it is two reports bound together. The English half follows the order set by the 2000 Rules that govern it [1]: Part I on the market and IRDAI's policies (from page 7), Part II on operations, intermediaries, grievances and the ombudsman (from page 61), Part III on IRDAI's statutory functions (from page 95), and Part IV on IRDAI itself. Eighteen statistical Statements and eleven Annexures follow from page 131. Most of the market figures sit in Part I. The highlights pages before each Part are images, so a text search of the PDF will not find their numbers.
One practical tip. The printed page numbers run from page 1 at PDF page 233, so add 232 to any page number below to jump straight there in a PDF viewer.
2. The headline numbers
Industry totals. Page numbers are the printed pages of the English report (PDF page = printed page + 232). Penetration and density come from Swiss Re data quoted by IRDAI.
| Measure | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total premium, all insurers | Not given on the highlights page | ₹11,93,444 crore [1] | Highlights (PDF p. 236) |
| Total claims and benefits paid | Not given on the highlights page | ₹8,35,980 crore [1] | Highlights (PDF p. 236) |
| Insurance penetration (premium % of GDP) | 3.7% | 3.7% [1] | p. 12, Table I.7 |
| Life / non-life penetration | 2.8% / 1.0% | 2.7% / 1.0% [1] | p. 12 |
| Insurance density (premium per person) | USD 95 | USD 97 [1] | p. 12, Table I.8 |
| Life insurance premium | ₹8,29,929 crore | ₹8,85,772 crore, up 6.73% [1] | p. 15, Table I.9 |
| Non-life gross direct premium (India) | ₹2,89,673 crore | ₹3,07,611 crore, up 6.19% [1] | p. 19, Table I.12 |
| Non-life incurred claims ratio | 82.52% | 82.88% [1] | p. 22, Table I.14 |
| Individual death claims paid, by number | Not given | 97.82% [1] | p. 18, Table I.11 |
Two cautions on that table. The ₹8,35,980 crore of "claims paid" on the highlights page includes ₹6,30,171 crore from life insurers [1], and most of that is maturities and surrenders, not death claims [1]. Penetration and density are Swiss Re's figures, which IRDAI quotes; India's are measured on a financial year and the world's on a calendar year [1].
3. Health insurance, pages 39 to 45
Section I.6.5 is the part most of our readers want.
General and standalone health insurers only, excluding personal accident and travel unless stated.
| Health insurance measure | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health premium | ₹1,07,681 crore, up 20.32% | ₹1,17,505 crore, up 9.12% [1] | p. 39, Table I.25 |
| Standalone health insurers' premium | ₹32,180 crore | ₹37,331 crore, up 16.00% [1] | p. 39 |
| Lives covered / policies | 5,728.71 lakh lives | 58 crore lives under 2.65 crore policies [1] | p. 40, Table I.26 |
| Individual policies: lives / premium | 558.57 lakh / ₹41,501 crore | 601.46 lakh / ₹46,611 crore [1] | p. 40 |
| Health incurred claims ratio, all | 88.15% | 86.98% [1] | p. 41, Table I.27 |
| ICR on individual policies | 75.06% | 77.93% [1] | p. 41 |
| Claims paid | Not given | 3.26 crore claims, ₹94,248 crore, average ₹28,910 [1] | p. 42, Table I.28 |
| Cashless share | Not given | 58% of claims by number, 66.35% by amount [1] | p. 42 |
| Paid / repudiated / pending, by number | Not given | About 87% / 8% / 5% [1] | pp. 42-43, Table I.29 |
| Amount disallowed under policy terms | Not given | ₹18,521 crore, 13.98% of the amount claimed [1] | p. 43 |
The disallowed row is the one we would look at first. Repudiation is a refusal of the claim outright. Disallowance, in IRDAI's words "claims disallowed as per terms and conditions of policy contract", is money cut from claims under the policy's own terms, which in practice means deductions such as room-rent limits, co-payments and sub-limits. Across the industry that came to ₹18,521 crore in one year, more than the ₹11,412 crore repudiated [1]. If you have had a cashless claim settled short, this is where it is counted, and how those deductions work on a senior's policy is set out on what you will actually pay.
How health insurance is sold also shows up in Part II. Individual agents bring in 72.19% of individual health premium, and online direct sales just 3.88% [1]. Group health runs mostly through brokers.
4. Claims and complaints
Section II.6 on pages 81 to 84 covers grievances.
Complaints registered on IRDAI's Bima Bharosa portal. The report gives sector totals, not insurer names.
| Grievances | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| All grievances | 2,15,569 | 2,57,790 [1] | p. 83, Table II.17 |
| General and health insurers | 94,843 | 1,37,361 [1] | p. 83 |
| Life insurers | 1,20,726 | 1,20,429 [1] | p. 83 |
| Pending at 31 March | 5,492 | 10,160, of which 8,201 against public-sector general insurers [1] | p. 83 |
| Per lakh policies and lives | Not given | 7.67 overall; 15.72 life; 5.29 general and health [1] | p. 82, Table II.15 |
| Share that were about claims (general and health) | Not given | 69%, or 88,841 grievances [1] | p. 83 |
| Mis-selling (UFBP) grievances, life | 23,335 (19.33%) | 26,667 (22.14%) [1] | p. 82, Table II.16 |
The increase is almost entirely in general and health insurance. The report does not say why it rose, and nothing in it lets you split the health complaints out from motor [1]. The backlog at public-sector general insurers stands out: 8,201 grievances pending at year end, against 1,405 at private ones.
Section II.8 records that the ombudsman can now award up to ₹50 lakh, up from ₹30 lakh, and that insurers must comply with an award within 30 days [1]. It gives no count of ombudsman complaints. The routes for escalating a refused claim are on a senior's claim was refused: what next.
5. Insurer by insurer: the claims ratio, not a settlement ratio
This is the most misread table in the report.
Statement 10, page 142. Health here includes personal accident. This is claims incurred as a share of premium earned, not the share of claims an insurer pays.
| Insurer | Health ICR 2023-24 | Health ICR 2024-25 |
|---|---|---|
| Star Health | 66.47% | 70.30% [1] |
| Care Health | 57.69% | 64.53% [1] |
| Niva Bupa | 59.02% | 61.22% [1] |
| Aditya Birla Health | 68.31% | 71.50% [1] |
| ManipalCigna | 63.78% | 74.81% [1] |
| ICICI Lombard | 78.85% | 82.24% [1] |
| HDFC ERGO | 80.98% | 84.85% [1] |
| Bajaj Allianz | 84.96% | 87.31% [1] |
| Tata AIG | 77.94% | 76.24% [1] |
| SBI General | 87.86% | 82.19% [1] |
| New India Assurance | 105.87% | 100.98% [1] |
| United India | 109.23% | 97.51% [1] |
| Oriental | 101.96% | 102.58% [1] |
| National | 90.83% | 96.05% [1] |
An incurred claims ratio is claims incurred divided by premium earned. It tells you how much of the premium an insurer spends on claims, not how often it says yes. It moves with pricing, the mix of group and retail business, and reserving. Public-sector insurers above 100% are paying out more than they earn in premium on health [1]. A low ratio means more premium kept, and could equally reflect stricter claims handling or simply a younger, newer book; the report cannot tell you which. Our view is that a ratio in the 60s is a reason to ask questions, not a verdict. Standalone health insurers ran at 68.06% overall, against 77.50% for private general insurers [1].
6. What changed from 2023-24, in the report's own words
- Health premium growth more than halved, to 9.12% from 20.32% [1].
- The health claims ratio eased from 88.15% to 86.98%, but rose on individual policies, from 75.06% to 77.93% [1].
- Standalone health insurers' claims ratio rose from 63.63% to 68.06% [1].
- New individual life policies fell 7.39%, with LIC's down 12.80% [1].
- Mis-selling grievances against life insurers rose from 23,335 to 26,667 [1].
- The year's rule changes for policyholders are summarised too: the 29 May 2024 health master circular (cashless approval within one hour, discharge within three, no claim documents demanded from the patient) [1], and the 30 January 2025 cap of 10% a year on senior citizens' premium increases without IRDAI consultation [1].
7. What it does not tell you
There is no insurer-wise claim settlement ratio, no insurer-wise complaint count, and no split of health complaints by insurer [1]. Premium figures for each standalone health insurer are in Statement 7 (Star Health ₹16,716 crore, Care ₹8,318 crore, Niva Bupa ₹6,762 crore) [1], but nothing about how any one of them treats a claim. For that, the closest evidence is ombudsman awards and policy wordings, which is what our senior health insurance ranking and why senior claims get rejected are built on.
8. Where it fits
This report is the backward-looking record. For what IRDAI is proposing next on commissions and premiums, see our reading of the September 2026 distribution consultation paper. For the senior premium cap, see can your insurer raise a senior's premium by more than 10%. The original is on IRDAI's annual reports page, alongside IRDAI's earlier annual reports.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I download the IRDAI annual report 2024-25 PDF?
Is the IRDAI annual report 2025-26 out?
What is the insurance penetration in India as per the IRDAI annual report 2024-25?
Does the IRDAI annual report give the claim settlement ratio of each insurer?
How many complaints were filed against insurance companies in 2024-25?
How much health insurance premium was collected in India in 2024-25?
Is the IRDAI annual report available in English?
Sources
Every figure on this page is footnoted to one of the primary documents below. Reliability tiers: A = regulator, court or filed document; B = reputable publisher or carrier official page; C = user-generated (reported by users).
- 1.IRDAI — IRDAI Annual Report 2024-25. https://irdai.gov.in/documents/37343/366637/%E0%A4%86%E0%A4%88%E0%A4%86%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A1%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%8F%E0%A4%86%E0%A4%88+%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B7%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%95+%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%8B%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%9F+_+IRDAI+Annual+Report+2024-25.pdf/06f02832-66a3-6308-a16f-f46a6640fc93Tier A · Regulator / court / filed document · Published 2025-12-30 · Accessed 2026-10-02