Insurance
Awareness Committee Champions Protection-First Financial Planning with ‘Sabse
Pehle Life Insurance’ Campaign
Mumbai, July 02, 2025: India
continues to grapple with a significant life insurance protection gap—one that
has risen from 83% in 2019 to 87% in 2023, according to a December 2023 NIA study(i).
The gap is even more pronounced among those aged 18–35, exceeding 90%. This
growing vulnerability poses a serious threat to families’ financial security
and aspirations.
To address the challenge of penetration, the Insurance Awareness
Committee representing all life insurers in India, has launched the
next phase of its national campaign, Sabse Pehle Life Insurance. The
initiative will continue to motivate every Indian, with renewed vigour, to make
life insurance the foundation of their financial journey, turning rising
awareness into meaningful action.
At its core, the campaign challenges the common habit of prioritising
savings and investments while neglecting basic financial protection. It
reaffirms that life insurance should be the starting point of any secure
financial plan—providing a strong foundation for long-term goals like
children’s education, homeownership, and retirement.
Through authentic storytelling and emotionally resonant narratives, the
campaign brings to life everyday moments that highlight what’s truly at stake.
The campaign positions life insurance not just as a contract, but as a life
tool—safeguarding dreams, supporting families, and offering peace of mind.
The campaign is planned as a year-long initiative to drive behavioural
change among consumers and increase awareness and penetration of life insurance
solutions. To ensure reach and recall, it will be executed across multiple
media platforms including Television, Digital, Print, Outdoor etc.
,%20Amit%20Jhingran%20(SBI%20Life),%20Piyush%20Pandey,%20Swaminathan%20Iyer%20(IRDAI),%20Kamlesh%20Rai(ABSLI),%20LIC,%20Rishab%20Gandhi%20(India%20First),%20Parag%20Raja%20(Bharati%20AXA%20Life)..jpg)
Member, Insurance Awareness Committee
(IAC-Life), said, “Sabse Pehle Life Insurance is not just a slogan—it’s a
clarion call to rethink how we approach financial planning. We often treat
protection as an afterthought in the endeavour to build wealth. This campaign
aims to change that mindset. It is about putting protection first, about
securing dreams before chasing them. Just as every structure needs a strong
foundation, we should place every financial plan on the bedrock of life
insurance. Our goal is to turn awareness into action, ensuring that no Indian
family remains financially exposed.”
The campaign aims to shift life insurance from a good-to-have option to
a must-have-first component of financial planning. As part of this phase, the Insurance
Awareness Committee has also elevated the digital knowledge hub https://www.sabsepehlelifeinsurance.com/, which
serves as a key component of the campaign. The portal will provide simplified
and valuable resources that will enable people to assess coverage needs and
make informed choices.
The initiative aligns with broader efforts to reduce the protection gap,
including IRDAI’s 2024 mandate requiring life insurers to cover at least 10% of
lives in 25,000 Gram Panchayats(ii). These efforts will complement the
industry-wide improvements that are improves trust and reinforces positive
perceptions. The IRDAI, in its Handbook on Indian Insurance Statistics 2023-24,
revealed that India’s insurers, cumulatively, settled 96.82% of life insurance
policy claims for FY 2023-24, within 30 days(iii). The industry, currently
growing at 9.5% CAGR(iv) and projected to grow at 10.5%(v)over the next decade,
is also performing better than most global economies.
As India moves forward in its quest to become a $5 trillion economy, the
Insurance Awareness Committee remains committed to encouraging every Indian to
protect their family’s future by making life insurance the first step.
Watch the campaign here:
Child
Plan https://youtu.be/pjmHJhGzWwQ
Retirement
Plan https://youtu.be/x-w3cCmAn48
Term Plan
https://youtu.be/8dKkV-yaFIk
Data source:
(ii)
Source-
As per IRDAI Annual Report 2024
(iv)
Source:
IRDAI Handbook, IRDAI Annual Report, IBEF
(vi)
https://www.pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=1549454
About Insurance Awareness Committee:
87% of India continues to grapple with a significant life insurance
protection gap, which continues to increase, exceeding 90% amongst those aged
18–35. This growing vulnerability is a threat to families’ financial security
and aspirations.
Addressing this challenge on a war footing is crucial to maintaining our
society’s socio-economic resilience and security. The Insurance Awareness
Committee was formed under the aegis of the Life Insurance Council to take
action on this issue.
Formed in 2019, 24 Life Insurance firms have come together to contribute under
the guidance of six CEOs nominated to lead the agenda. Further comprised of a
cross-industry marketing team supported by creative/ media agencies, the
Insurance Awareness Committee researches, plans, creates and deploys nationwide
campaigns that drive awareness, understanding and consideration of life
insurance products.
