IRDAI to regulate misleading insurance ads with new draft policy

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) has proposed to prohibit insurers from issuing advertisements that make claims which are beyond reasonable expectations of performance.

Misleading advertisements that fail to clearly identify the product as insurance and describe benefits that do not match the policy provisions will be monitored, the regulator said in its Draft Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Insurance Advertisements and Disclosure) Regulations 2020.

The regulator has invited comments from stakeholders on its new draft policy and set a deadline of November 10.

The two objectives stated in the draft policy are to ensure that the insurers, intermediaries or insurance intermediaries are adopting fair, honest and transparent practices while issuing advertisements and avoid practices that tend to impair the confidence of the public and that the publicity material is relevant, fair and in simple language enabling informed decision making.