Star Health & Allied Insurance Company Ltd said the company has recalibrated its group insurance portfolio by increasing the share of the small and medium enterprise (SME) segment from 58% to 78%, while maintaining a measured presence in personal accident and travel Insurance. The move reflects the insurer’s strategy of pursuing profitable growth while reducing dependence on large corporate group policies.
The Chennai-based company strengthened its leadership in India’s retail health insurance market during FY26, driven by strong growth in fresh retail business, improved claims management and an expanding digital ecosystem, according to Managing Director & CEO Anand Roy.
In his message to shareholders in the company’s Annual Report 2026, Roy said the insurer sharpened execution across distribution, underwriting, claims and customer experience, resulting in Gross Written Premium (GWP) of ₹20,384 crore (IND AS), while fresh retail GWP surged 37% during the year.
The company retained its leadership in the retail health insurance segment with a 31% market share, improved its renewal ratio to 99%, and brought down the retail claims ratio to 68.2%, reflecting stronger underwriting discipline.
Retail business remains the growth engine
Roy said retail indemnity insurance continued to be the backbone of Star Health’s business, with retail policies accounting for 96% of the company’s GWP.
The insurer expanded its proprietary distribution network to 8.3 lakh agents across 924 branches, while its Agency and Digital Direct-to-Customer (D2C) channels contributed 91% of fresh retail business.
The company’s digital transformation also gathered pace, with 96% of fresh business premiums collected digitally during FY26.
“Scale, on its own, is not a strategy; what sustains it is the discipline to do the fundamentals exceptionally well, year after year,” Roy said.
The company maintained an Expense of Management ratio of 30.5% and a solvency ratio of 2.05 times under Indian GAAP, underlining its financial stability.
AI powers claims and fraud detection
Roy highlighted artificial intelligence as a key enabler of the company’s healthcare and insurance operations.
The Star Health Customer App, which enables policyholders to initiate and track claims, access policy details and locate network hospitals, crossed 14 million downloads, while monthly active users increased to 1.5 million.
The company said its new claims platform now processes 75% of total claim volumes, supported by AI-powered fraud detection, digital health records, real-time pre-authorisation and integrated hospital-insurer systems.
Star Health settled 92% of cashless claims within three hours, while keeping claims processing costs at around 1% of GWP.
From insurer to healthcare partner
Roy said India’s changing healthcare landscape is creating sustained demand for long-term financial protection against rising medical costs.
Over the past two decades, Star Health has covered nearly 20 crore lives, supporting customers not only during claims but throughout their healthcare and wellness journey.
“As healthcare needs evolve, so do we. This belief has shaped our evolution from a traditional insurer into a holistic healthcare partner anchored by exceptional customer service and hassle-free claims,” he said