Bharti AXA General Insurance (GI) Launches SmartTraveller

BANGALORE, April 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

- Segment Specific International Travel Insurance Plans for Students, Individuals/Families and Frequent Travellers  

- Seamless Claims Assistance Through AXA Assistance to Leverage AXA's Global Presence 

- Instant Purchase Through  http://www.bharti-axagi.co.in  to Target the Growing Online Travel Base 

Bharti AXA General Insurance (GI) Company Ltd. has launched SmartTraveller that offers global coverage for students, individuals, families and frequent travellers.

     (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131008/10077119)

The SmartTraveller Insurance policy offers a choice of two major plans catering to:

• Individuals and families and frequent travellers through a variant - known as Annual Multi Trip International travel insurance plan. These cover geographies including U.S.A and Canada, Schengen (enlistment underway); Asia excluding Japan and Worldwide including Japan.
• Students in the age group of 16 to 40 years, covering U.S.A and Canada and rest of the world.

Addressing the media, Mr. Subrahmanyam B., Senior Vice President, Bharti AXA General Insurance, said, "The travel sentiment in India has been fairly robust and travel spends in 2014 have increased by 15%. On the other hand, the travel insurance market size is approximately 450 crore a year and it is growing at 20-25%. However, reports suggest that only 60% of Indians understand the importance of purchasing travel insurance, this too largely due to mandated travel insurance for some countries.

We see a fairly good growth in this segment especially with both e-commerce and international travel gaining greater acceptance from an average Indian.

Our travel product is very comprehensive with even the basic version offering between 11 - 14 benefits that equip travellers to manage nearly any exigency they may face.

We are pleased to partner with AXA Assistance, which will ensure seamless end-to-end claims assistance globally, thereby leveraging on the strengths of our parent company. We are confident that this product will be received well by the frequent traveller community and helps us become the first choice for customers."

The Bharti AXA GI Advantage 

1) Extensive coverage: Individual and family plans cover several travel exigencies like medical emergencies, loss of travel documents (Passport, tickets etc.), loss of checked-in baggage, compassionate visit in case of medical emergency, financial emergency, daily allowance if hospitalization is needed, among others. Student international travel insurance plans in addition cover sponsor protection and reimbursement of the tuition fees due to study interruption. A further extension of benefits can be opted for with nominal payment of 10% of premium. For e.g. students can get cover for treatment of mental and nervous disorders including alcohol and drug dependency.

2) One company for end-to-end handling: Partnership with AXA Assistance ensures comprehensive claims assistance across the globe. AXA Assistance offers best in class solutions for all traveller needs from seeking pre-travel information for a trip to medical assistance while traveling abroad, the AXA Assistance Global Medical Network provides access to an extensive network of physicians and facilities in more than 200 countries around the world. The comprehensive claims management from AXA Assistance provides a high degree of transparency and efficiently reduces overall costs through preferred discounted rates with medical providers and direct settlements.

3) Quick online purchase: To quicken and simplify the buying process, Bharti AXA General Insurance website http://www.bharti-axagi.co.in offers prospective buyers all necessary tools to make a quick purchase online with no paperwork. Being easy to navigate, jargon free and user friendly, the website provides details like exigencies covered, coverage limits, exclusions, etc. By filling in trip details, one can receive instant quotes on recommended plans as per travel requirements and budgets. This is followed by a quick and easy option of online payment and purchase. In addition, Bharti AXA GI is also pursuing e-partnerships with several travel portals to reach out to greater number of travellers.

4) Toll free number for claims assistance from any part of the globe: The claims process is just as simple, transparent and quick. For claim or emergency assistance whilst abroad, the insured may call on dedicated toll free numbers (For Canada - 844-691-8883, For USA - 844-691-8885, for rest of the world excluding Canada and USA +91 11 47324403). A representative guides the insured over phone on the claims process. A claim form available online can be completed and transmitted to the company with all supporting information.

5) Affordable travel plans for different consumer segments: Costing less than 1% of the entire travel cost, these plans truly offer comprehensive coverage against different travel exigencies, thereby offering peace of mind to individuals, families, students and frequent travellers.

New offering to boost growth 

The launch of the company's international travel insurance products is in line with its growth strategy on account of its focus on customer and partner centric products. As far as establishing a market for the travel offering is concerned, Bharti AXA General Insurance is following a three pronged approach. Firstly, it is working towards boosting online purchase of its policies. All necessary online tools are being made available for quick and easy purchase. This allows the organization to reach out to consumers in areas where physical distribution infrastructure is not strong. Secondly, the company is also tying up with several online travel websites so that consumers can purchase insurance while purchasing tickets or booking trip packages online. Finally, tie-ups with travel agents and student counsellors have been and are being pursued rigorously to reach out to students opting for studying aboard and travellers who buy tickets through agents. The organization is also aiming at penetration into existing markets and reaching out to newer markets and segments through differentiated services and digital offerings.

About Bharti AXA General Insurance: 

Bharti AXA General Insurance Company Ltd is a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises, a leading Indian business group, and AXA, a world leader in financial protection. The joint venture company has a 74% stake from Bharti and 26% stake of the AXA Group.

Presently the organization has cashless facilities in over 4,500 network hospitals and over 2,300 garages, as well as 24/7 claims registration through multi-modal channels like e-mail and SMS. The organization commenced national operations in August 2008 and currently has 69 branch offices across the country.

It is the first organization in the GI Industry to receive dual certifications of ISO 9001:2008 & ISO 27001:2005. In October 2014, it successfully upgraded to ISO 27001: 2013 standard being ISO 27001: 2013.

About AXA Assistance Group 

AXA Assistance is among the world leaders in providing assistance, with 1,157 million Euros annual revenues in 2013 and 8.5 million handled files. Wholly-owned by the AXA Group, AXA Assistance is the global specialist provider in emergency response as everyday assistance in four business areas: Automotive, Travel, Health and Home & Personal Services.

Its 7,000 people are located in 33 countries and do business in over 200 countries.

They are intended to protect and reassure their customers by creating and providing best-in-class solutions anywhere, anytime.

This press release is available on the AXA Assistance website 

About AXA Asia 

AXA Asia is a market leading insurance player offering a differentiated composite proposition in Life and General Insurance with operational presence in Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, China, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. AXA Asia is part of the AXA Group, headquartered in Paris and a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management with a presence in 59 countries. AXA Asia is committed to creating a sustainable, long-term business for our employees, customers and shareholders.

About The AXA Group 

The AXA Group is a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management, with 157,000 employees serving 103 million clients in 59 countries. In 2014, IFRS revenues amounted to Euro 92.0 billion and IFRS underlying earnings to Euro 5.1 billion</money>. AXA had Euro 1,277 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2014. The AXA ordinary share is listed on compartment A of Euronext Paris under the ticker symbol CS (ISN FR 0000120628 - Bloomberg: CS FP - Reuters: AXAF.PA). AXA's American Depository Share is also quoted on the OTC QX platform under the ticker symbol AXAHY. The AXA Group is included in the main international SRI indexes, such as Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and FTSE4GOOD. It is a founding member of the UN Environment Programme's Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) Principles for Sustainable Insurance and a signatory of the UN Principles for Responsible Investment.

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