ICICI Lombard and BharatPe partner to launch industry-first Coronavirus cover for shopkeepers

BharatPe, India’s largest merchant payment & lending network has partnered with ICICI Lombard to roll out 'COVID-19 Protection Insurance Cover' for shopkeepers. Amid the contagious pandemic, this policy on a diagnosis of COVID-19 (+ve) will pay 100% of the sum insured, irrespective of hospitalization expenses. The new product is a step forward in BharatPe's endeavour in introducing industry-first initiatives for shopkeepers. It is also a ‘first of its kind’ sachet product by ICICI Lombard that will cover merchants.

The health cover is priced affordably at a premium starting at nominal amount of ₹ 199 and provides a sum insured for ₹ 25,000 and value-added benefits such as Health Assistance and CHAT/Virtual assistance, teleconsultation and ambulance assistance, as part of the offering. The unique benefit of the COVID-19 Insurance Protection Cover is the coverage across the age group of 18-65 years.

On the introduction of the new COVID-19 insurance, Ashneer Grover, CEO & Co-Founder, BharatPe said, "Merchants’ well-being is our immediate focus, and as Coronavirus turns into a pandemic, we have designed a unique insurance cover with ICICI Lombard to provide financial support to merchants. Shopkeepers will get 100% of the opted Sum Insured as a lump sum in the event of the first diagnosis itself. The small businesses are the most affected financially and shopkeepers are at the most risk from risk of infection. The insurance is available on the BharatPe app and we hope to cover lakhs of our merchants digitally over the next few days." 

On the tie-up Sanjeev Mantri, Executive Director, ICICI Lombard said, “At ICICI Lombard, we are committed to go the extra mile and introduce relevant and timely solutions for customers. With the current threat on account of coronavirus pandemic, we have introduced a dedicated policy – Covid-19 Protection Insurance Cover. Further, our association with Bharat Pe enables us to reach out to their merchant base which could be vulnerable to the virus given their business activity. This tie-up is aligned with our brand ethos of ‘Nibhaaye Vaade’ (Keeping Promises) and our commitment to meet the insurance related needs of consumers and businesses.”