Insurance Coverage Expands Modestly as Premium Collection Rises

Kathmandu – The total population covered by Kathmandu Insurance has reached 44.17 percent, including term, short-term, and foreign employment life insurance policies. This marks a slight increase from the 43.16 percent coverage recorded during the same period last fiscal year.

However, when excluding term, micro term, and foreign employment life insurance, only 16.57 percent of the population was covered as of last month, down from 17.04 percent a year earlier. The Nepal Insurance Authority reported that while insurance companies have expanded their branch networks and workforce, the overall growth in insurance coverage remains modest.

Despite this, the insurance sector has seen significant growth in premium collections. By end of Falgun month (mid-March) of the current fiscal year, life and non-life insurance companies licensed by the Insurance Authority had collected a total of Rs 138.4 billion in insurance premiums, a 10.56 percent increase compared to Rs 124.8 billion collected in the same period last fiscal year.

Life insurance companies accounted for Rs 194.3 billion of the total, reflecting an 11 percent increase, while non-life insurance companies collected Rs 28.60 billion, marking an 8.91 percent rise. As of Falgun last fiscal year, life insurance companies had collected Rs 98.59 billion, while non-life insurance companies had collected Rs 26.26 billion.

During this period, life insurance companies generated Rs 23.80 billion in first premiums and Rs 85.62 billion from insurance renewals. Compared to the previous fiscal year, the first insurance fee has grown by 27.14 percent, while the renewal fee has increased by 7.22 percent.

The Authority’s report also highlighted a 2.05 percent increase in the number of insurance company offices and a 4.67 percent rise in employees over the past year.

Currently, the number of active life insurance policies stands at 14.23 million, while non-life insurance policies total 2.07 million. Over the review period, active life insurance policies have increased by 2.12 percent, and non-life insurance policies by 5.82 percent. However, the issuance of new life insurance policies has declined by 17.06 percent.