IPQ 4.0 reveals 1 in 2 urban Indian seek fitness apps when purchasing life insurance

Tapping 5,729 respondents across 25 Indian cities (between 10 December 2021 to 14 January 2022), the survey was carried out during the recent wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A prolonged pandemic has spurred urban Indians to focus on their health and wellbeing. According to the survey, 76 percent respondents are paying attention to their fitness regimen and when purchasing life insurance 49 percent seek health and fitness apps. This also indicates changing consumer preferences with majority expecting a range of holistic services from insurers including tax planning, financial counselling and dedicated claims management services to ease claim settlements.

IPQ 4.0 also highlights a shift in daily lifestyle choices owing to COVID-19, with 55 percent consumers focusing on regular exercise, 54 percent consuming home-cooked/healthy meals, 47 percent following a diet plan and 42 percent undergoing routine health checkups.

Commenting on the findings, V. Viswanand, Deputy Managing Director, Max Life said, "While urban India's sense of financial security and awareness grew during the pandemic, maintaining a healthy living remained a critical aspect for financial protection. IPQ 4.0 brings some unique insights into the growing and evolving new-age consumers with a sizeable base seeking health and fitness benefits from their life insurance policies. This is an avenue for insurers to create customized products and contribute in adding further value to the lives of policyholders."

The following findings reveal insights that highlight urban India's shift across health and wellness priorities and anxieties studied by India Protection Quotient 4.0:

Urban Indians seek health & fitness benefits from life insurers

As per IPQ 4.0, 49 percent or nearly 1 in every 2 urban Indians look for a health/fitness app that monitors their daily regime and offers associated benefits/discounts. This reflects a significant trend of connected wellness offerings for consumers today.

6 in 10 anxious about mental health and wellbeing

Personal well-being (62 percent) emerged as a key concern for urban India with the pandemic straining mental and physical health. This was followed by sustaining lifestyle and expenses with current savings (60 percent) and financial security with the untimely death of the family breadwinner (59 percent).

Steady increase in Critical Illness (CI) rider purchase

The survey also revealed 35 percent respondents owning a CI rider as compared to 33 percent in IPQ 3.0 Express. While this is a notable improvement, scope remains for increasing rider ownership across urban India.

The study is conducted in top 25 Urban Metro, Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities; hence, its findings are representative of Metro, Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities of Urban India only.

Metro - Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai

Tier 1 - Ludhiana, Jaipur, Lucknow, Patna, Bhubaneshwar, Vizag, Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Pune

Tier 2 - Dehradun, Moradabad, Guwahati, Bokaro, Kolhapur, Jamnagar, Raipur, Ujjain, Hubli-Dharwad, Tiruchirappalli

IPQ 3.0 Express vs IPQ 4.0 (digital versions) data comparison is amongst 25 markets only (6 Metros, 9 Tier 1 and 10 Tier 2)

The minimum sample to conclude any findings of the study is 270 with an error margin of +-5.964 percent

Instituted in 2019, India Protection Quotient is an annual property by Max Life Insurance in association with Kantar aimed to understand the pulse of the Indian consumers in the financial protection space. Launched with the underlying objective to increase penetration of Term insurance as the most fundamental and economical form of life insurance, the survey aims to reveal the state of Urban Indians with regards to current financial security levels, changing savings & investment patterns, key anxieties & triggers of financial protection in a contemporary world.

India Protection Quotient is a proprietary tool developed by Max Life in partnership with Kantar to gauges the degree to which Indians feel protected from future uncertainties on a scale of 0 to 100. It is based on the attitudes, mental preparedness around future uncertainties, awareness, and ownership of life insurance product categories (Term, endowment and ULIP).

Max Life Insurance Company Limited is a Joint Venture between Max Financial Services Limited and Axis Bank Limited. Max Financial Services Ltd. is a part of the Max Group, an Indian multi-business corporation.

Max Life offers comprehensive protection and long-term savings life insurance solutions, through its multi-channel distribution including agency and third-party distribution partners. Max Life has built its operations over almost two decades through a need-based sales process, a customer-centric approach to engagement and service delivery and trained human capital.

As per public disclosures and annual audited financials for FY20-21, Max Life has achieved a gross written premium of INR 19,018 crore. As of 31st March 2021, the Company had INR 90,407 crore of assets under management (AUM) and a Sum Assured in Force of INR 1,087,987 crore.

For more information, please visit the Company's website at www.maxlifeinsurance.com.

Kantar is the world's leading evidence-based insights and consulting company. We have a complete, unique, and rounded understanding of how people think, feel and act; globally and locally in over 90 markets. By combining the deep expertise of our people, our data resources and benchmarks, our innovative analytics and technology, we help our clients understand people and inspire growth.

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