Cost pressures drive 1,100 to surrender life policies

More than 1,100 LICI (Fiji) policyholders surrendered their life insurance policies last year, with the company citing seasonal unemployment and cost-of-living pressures among the key reasons.

LICI (Fiji) Manager Information Technology and Network Management Raveendra Kunchanapalli said the figure represented less than two per cent of the company's 62,000 policies.

“We have faced around 1,100 people have surrendered their policies due to various reasons,” Mr Kunchanapalli said.

LICI (Fiji) General Manager Shridhar Pathare said many surrenders were linked to seasonal employment gaps, particularly in the tourism sector.

“There will be no employment. There will be no salary. So that time, sometimes the people may think that he needs money. So you go for surrender,” Mr Pathare said.

Manager Human Resources Vivek Prakash said external economic pressures, including the fuel crisis, were also placing pressure on household budgets.

He said this could affect future growth in insurance policies.

“If people have less income they will have less money to invest. Their savings will be depleted,” Mr Prakash said.

LICI said it discouraged policyholders from surrendering their policies and instead encouraged them to take policy loans.

The company disbursed 14,765 loans in 2025 worth F$52.10 million, with a one-day turnaround time.

Mr Pathare compared the trend with other financial products, citing Fiji National Provident Fund data showing more than 426,000 registered accounts, of which only about 250,000 remain active.

“It is happening everywhere. In any financial product,” he said.

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