The Insurance Brokers Association of India (IBAI) has warned that the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India’s (IRDAI) proposed reforms to insurance distribution could trigger a 60-70% revenue collapse across the broking sector and put at least 10 lakh jobs at risk.
The warning came at a press briefing held at IMC Chambers in Mumbai on October 6, where IBAI board members addressed the regulator’s consultation paper titled “Reforms for Recalibrating Economics of Insurance Distribution,” released on September 23, 2026.
“The industry will lose up to 70% of the revenues and proposals will lead to 10 lakh job losses on a conservative basis,” said Pavanjit Singh Dhingra, Director, IBAI.
At the heart of the opposition are proposed product-wise commission caps for insurance distributors and a planned 30% reduction in insurers’ Expense of Management (EoM) limits over five years. IBAI, which represents India’s 798 licensed insurance brokers, said the distribution channel employs roughly 83 lakh people. Of these, brokers sponsored 14.81 lakh of India’s 27.18 lakh point-of-sale persons as of March 31, 2025.
S Mohan, Vice President of IBAI, said professional brokers play a vital role in helping buyers navigate complex policy terms, compare insurance products and settle claims. “Insurance is sold, not bought over the counter,” he said.
The association said it supports IRDAI’s broader objectives of improving policyholder protection and increasing transparency. But it wants a longer glide path for implementation, an independent economic impact assessment before rollout, and a delay of the reforms until at least 2028.
IBAI has until October 25 to submit its detailed response to IRDAI. The body has also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, urging a review of the proposals.
