HDFC Life Insurance is currently one of India's leading private insurance companies. The insurer commenced its functions in 2000 and now has an average annual business volume of ₹24,315 crores. The insurer's credibility is well established. Subsequently, each of its financial products is widely popular in the market.
HDFC Life hosts products like group policies, ULIPs, retirement policies, savings plans, and term insurance policies. The insurer takes pride in its operational proficiency over the industry-high Claim Settlement Ratio, lowest complaint volume, and excellent Amount Settlement Ratio. The only caveat for plans from this stable is that they are a tad bit expensive compared to others in its class. However, the comprehensiveness of the policies weighs out the caveat.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Industry-best Claim Settlement Ratio | Slightly expensive |
| Industry-lowest complaint volume | |
| Excellent Amount Settlement Ratio | |
| An excellent line-up of riders available for term insurance policies |
Metrics of HDFC Life Insurer 2024
Term insurance policies are one of the most affordable financial tools that act as income replacements in the case of the unfortunate demise of a policyholder. Since term insurance plans do not fetch any return and have no associated risks, the entire sum assured can be availed by the nominee of the policy.
In the case of HDFC Life Insurance Company, there are three options for term insurance policies - Click2Protect Life, Click2Protect Super, and Click2Protect 3D Plus. All the policies are equally value-worthy and comprehensive and come with multiple riders.
However, before you start shopping around for policies from this stable, let’s find out how credible this insurer is!
Claim Settlement Ratio of HDFC Life Insurer
Claim Settlement Ratio (CSR) of an insurer is given by -
(total number of claims settled in a year by the insurer / Total number of claims raised to the insurer in a year) * 100
The Claim Settlement Ratio and records of the proportion of claims paid out reflect the insurer's credibility. An insurer with a CSR of 97%+ is considered a credible provider. On the other hand, you need to steer clear of insurers with a CSR of below 80 or above 100. In the case of a 100+ CSR, you are looking at an insurer with delayed claim settlements that are added to this year’s claim count.
| Years | HDFC Life Insurer | Industry Average |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 - 2021 | 98.01% | 97.49% |
| 2021 - 2022 | 98.66% | 97.50% |
| 2022 - 2023 | 99.41% | 98.34% |
| Average (2020 - 2023) | 98.69% | 97.74% |
Insight: HDFC Life has the best CSR in the industry. This is an excellent sign for policyholders who trust the brand with their term insurance plan. This means they are looking at minimum risks of claim rejection.
Amount Settlement Ratio of HDFC Life Insurer
Amount Settlement Ratio or ASR of an insurer calculates the total amount of claims settled against the total amount of claims filed to the insurer over a single year.
A number higher than 90% is considered excellent for life insurance providers. It reflects the claim settlement potential of the insurer for the present and the future. This is a great sign for policyholders since term insurance plans are long-term financial commitments. You wouldn’t want an insurer who fails to settle your claim when the time arrives and you are in a financial and emotional crunch due to the loss of a family member.
| Years | HDFC Life Insurer | Industry Average |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 - 2020 | 92.6 | 90.8 |
| 2020 - 2021 | 80.1 | 91.2 |
| 2021 - 2022 | 89.4 | 90.6 |
| Average (2019 - 2022) | 87.3 | 90.9 |
Insight: The numbers across ASR for HDFC Life aren’t reassuring. However, the average dropped the most during the pandemic year of 2020- 21. This is understandable, considering the sudden pandemic and the subsequent rise in claims after multiple fatalities. The numbers have improved since and will probably continue to rise in the coming years since HDFC Life’s claim reputation is solid in the market.
Complaint Volume of HDFC Life Insurer
That HDFC Life is an exceptional pick as a term insurance provider can be well understood from its complaint volume. Please remember that the lion’s share of the complaints are rooted in issues related to delayed claim settlement, rejection of claims, etc. Thus, the complaint volume metrics reflect the overall operational efficiency of the insurer.
| Years | HDFC Life Insurer | Industry Average |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 - 2021 | 3.0 | 67.6 |
| 2021 - 2022 | 3.0 | 76.5 |
| 2022 - 2023 | 2.0 | 65.3 |
| Average (2020 - 2023) | 2.7 | 72.8 |
Insight: HHDFC Life has one of the lowest complaint volumes in the industry. This is no surprise considering how the insurer has built its reputation as a credible insurer, presenting no hurdles during claim settlement. This number explains why it has remained an assured and popular recommendation for term insurance plans.
Offered Riders in HDFC Life Insurer’s Term Insurance Plans
HDFC Life insurance term plans are already comprehensive as standalone policies. However, add to this the available value-worthy riders, and you have the perfectly customised plan to suit your family’s future financial goals in the case of your unfortunate absence.
| Riders | Click2Protect Life | Click2Protect Super | Click2Protect 3D Plus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waiver of Premium | ✔ (In case of 36 listed critical illness and if diagnosed with total permanent disability) | ✔ (In case of 60 listed critical illness and if diagnosed with total permanent disability) | ✔ (In-Built with terminal illness benefit) |
| Accidental Death Benefit | ✔ (same as the base sum assured) | ✔ (same as the base sum assured) | ✔ (same as the base sum assured) |
| Critical Illness Rider | ✔ (for 19 critical illnesses) Up to ₹1 crore | ✔ (for 19 critical illnesses) Up to ₹1 crore | ✔ (for 19 critical illnesses) Up to ₹1 crore |
| Income Benefit on Accidental Disability Rider | ✔ Up to ₹2 crore | ✔ Up to ₹2 crore | ✔ (1% of Rider Sum Assured per month for the next 10 years) |
| Personal Accident Cover | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ |
| Cancer Cover | ✔ (Up to ₹50 lakhs) | ✔ (Up to ₹50 lakhs) | ✖ |
| Total and Permanent Disability Rider | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
| Hospi Care Benefit | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
| Top-up | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ |
Term Insurance Plans Offered by HDFC Life Insurer
- Click2Protect Life: With an extensive coverage option of ₹25 lakhs to ₹2 crores, the policy is one of the most popular plans from the stable of HDFC Life and comes in multiple variants: Life & Critical Illness (CI) Rebalance, Life Protect, and Income Plus.
The best possible angle on this plan is the multitude of riders available in this policy -
- Income Benefit on Accidental Disability Rider
- Critical Illness (CI) Plus Rider
- Protect Plus Rider
- Return of Premium (ROP)
- Waiver of Premium on CI
- Accidental Death Benefit (ADB)
- Alteration of premium payment frequency
- Option to change the Premium Payment Term from Regular Pay to Limited Pay
This expands the choice for customisation for policyholders. While the policy might be a bit expensive, the features are worth the while. This is a decent pick if you are comfortable with the term insurance cover (you can calculate your ideal cover with our free term calculator) of ₹2 crores or less.
2. Click2Protect Super: This is a tad bit more expensive than the Click2Protect Life plan but has similar features. The plan has a smart exit perk with an in-built terminal illness benefit. The plan comes in 3 variants -
- Life: In this variant, the sum assured is paid out as a lump sum in the event of the policyholder’s death. The variant has a terminal illness perk, in which case the sum assured is paid out once the policyholder is declared to have a terminal ailment with only a few months to live.
- Life Plus: Along with the death benefit and terminal illness, the policyholder also has an additional perk of Accidental Death Benefit, in which case the nominee receives an additional amount (over and above the base sum assured) in case the policyholder dies due to an accident.
- Life Goal: Under this option, the sum assured payable on death would vary with the policy year. The variation is determined by the Amortisation Rate or Level Cover Period (the policyholder has to choose during the plan's inception).
Among the list of riders offered with this policy are some of the best in the industry-
- Waiver of Premium on Critical Illness
- Return of Premium
- Waiver of Premium on Total and Permanent Disability
- Spouse Cover Option
- Option to alter premium frequency
- Option to change Premium Payment Term from regular pay to limited pay
- Renewability Option at Maturity
- Life Stage Option
- Death benefit as an installment option
Since the difference in premiums between Click2Protect Super and Click2Protect Life is nominal, and yet the Super option offers several more perks than the Click2Protect Life plan, it is always best to go ahead with the Super option.
3. Click2Protect 3D Plus: This is one of the most comprehensive plans available, with 9 plan options:
| Riders | Life | 3D Life | Extra Life | Income Life | Extra Income | Income Replacement | Return of Premium | Life Long Protection | 3D Life Long Protection |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Death Benefit | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Terminal Illness | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Accidental Total Permanent Disability | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Accidental Death | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
| Waiver of Premium due to Critical Illness | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
| Return of Premium | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ |
The scope of customisation is extensive, considering it includes almost all the value-worthy riders ranging from
- Critical Illness,
- Terminal Illness,
- Waiver of Premium,
- Return of Premium,
- Regular Income Benefit
- Life Stage Benefit
- Top Up option
Needless to say, such a diverse list of features doesn’t come cheap. But if you are looking for a term insurance plan worth its price, this is it!
Conclusion
HDFC Life is one of the best life insurance providers in the industry, with plans that come with a diverse list of riders. Some of these riders, like the Cancer Care cover, are rare in the market. And although all the 3 plans mentioned above are pricier than the others in its class, they are very well worth it, not just because of the features it offer, but also because of the insurer. HDFC Life is credible and has an extensive insurance track record to prove its consistency of operational efficiency. This can be a no-brainer pick if you want a term insurance plan and don’t mind shelling out a bit extra.