The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has imposed Rs. 65 lakh penalty on India First Life insurance company for a number violations.
According to an order issued by IRDAI Chairman T S Vijayan, the life insurer had violated norms related to payment of commissions and reporting of expenses pertaining to corporate agents.
The Authority had listed 48 charges on the insurer for a wide range of irregularities and identified some of them as serious in nature. They included wrongful involvement of business development managers on behalf of corporate agents, running sales campaigns for the employees of corporate agents, offering incentives such as foreign trips, gift cards and online redemption points and faulty reporting of expenses and file and use procedures, among others.
The company has also been warned against any future violations on many other counts, as per the order.
In a statement, KR Viswanarayan Head - Governance and Company Secretary, IndiaFirst Life Insurance Company said: ``The lapses mentioned in the order are procedural violations that occurred during the initial years of the company's inception when processes were being stabilised. We have initiated corrective action and are committed to adhere to the principles of corporate governance.''
There was no loss caused to the customers, he added.