As cases of the novel coronavirus are steadily climbing in the country, general insurance companies continue to see higher claims for treating the disease. As on September 1, the non-life insurance industry received 1.69 lakh claims amounting to Rs 2,641 crore.

Maharashtra has the highest number of claims, followed by Tamil Nadu. So far, insurers have settled over 1.06 lakh claims amounting to more than Rs 1,000 crore.

Insurance companies have received over 69,500 claims from Maharashtra alone amounting to Rs 887 crore, show data from the General Insurance Council. Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have seen around 20,300 and 13,900 claims, respectively.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there were 8.01 lakh active cases of novel coronavirus in India as on September 2, 2020, another 29.01 lakh were discharged and there were 66,333 deaths due to the ongoing pandemic.

Market participants say if the number of cases rises in India, insurance claims will also go up in the days to come. In Maharashtra, Mumbai has seen 21,500 claims, followed by Pune at 15,800 and Thane at 8,586 claims.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, insurers are witnessing a huge demand for Covid-specific products, such as Corona Rakshak and Corona Kavach.

Last week, while speaking at the Ficci’s 21st annual insurance conference, FINCON 2020, Subhash C Khuntia, chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), said more than 15 lakh lives have been covered under Corona Rakshak and Corona Kavach within a month.

There has been a steady surge in the claims arising from Covid-19. As reported in FE earlier, non-life insurers had received 1.15 claims amounting to Rs 1,800 crore as on August 14, 2020. Later, on August 20, claims had touched 1.29 lakh, which amounted to Rs 2,040 crore.

According to senior officials from the insurance industry, the average ticket size for a novel Coronavirus claim is around Rs 1.5 lakh in urban areas and around Rs 50,000-75,000 in semi-urban or rural areas. Where the condition of patient is serious, and she/he has been admitted to the intensive care unit, claims are in the range of Rs 6-8 lakh.