Q: Sri Lanka Insurance (SLIC) is a household name that has stood the test of time. What aspect of your business do you think connects with people the most?
A: Insurance is all about trust and stability. Choosing your insurance partner is a long-term decision that affects people’s lives.

As the national insurer backed by state protection, we bear a great responsibility to protect millions of lives and the property of Sri Lankans. It is their unswerving trust that drove us throughout the past six decades. We have walked hand in hand with people, extending protection and delivering our promise.

Q: Could you outline the history of your organisation?
A: SLIC was established in 1962 by Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Minister of Commerce T. B. Ilangaratne under the Insurance Act No. 2 of 1961 to introduce the concept of insurance across the country.

As a state institution, SLIC played a critical role in economic development as the insurance partner for many national development projects in Sri Lanka.

Q: As for SLIC’s timeline since inception, what were the most significant mileposts?
A: Looking back to the history, in 1986 the insurance sector was opened up to allow competition, which led to profound challenges for us. In 2001, SLIC settled the largest claim ever paid in Sri Lanka’s insurance sector for the terrorist attack on Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), which reaffirms our stature as an insurance giant.

In 2003, SLIC was acquired by Distilleries Spence Consortium as a part of the privatisation plan of the government. This introduced the private sector’s work culture to SLIC and in 2009, the organisation was reinstated as a fully state owned insurer by the government.

We launched a new corporate identity in 2018, reflecting the organisation’s efforts to keep pace with the dynamic and challenging business environment. SLIC was moving along a trajectory of change and transformation, with a strategic plan covering product, policy, process and infrastructure.

In addition, SLIC was the first insurer in Sri Lanka to receive an ‘AAA (lka)’ Fitch rating in 2019 for financial stability and the ISO 9001:2015 quality standard.

Apart from these, we have been recognised as the ‘Most Loved’ insurance brand by Brand Finance for the past four years and received a National Business Excellence Award and National Quality Award, and been recently recognised as a Great Place to Work in Sri Lanka in 2021.

Q: SLIC has evolved as a business through the years. How has the market and customer evolved during this time? And how have you adapted to changing customer needs?
A: Sri Lanka has limitations to having a fully conducive environment for insurance. Insurance is not a priority as Sri Lanka has a high dependency rate – and insurance penetration is low. Therefore, there is a protection gap to be bridged by the insurance sector.

Currently, there is a positive trend towards insurance with more people being conscious about their health and protection. Consumer habits and purchasing patterns are changing, and people prefer digital-based insurance solutions.

Q: What has been the most significant challenge faced by the organisation in recent times?
A: The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most recent challenges that we have witnessed and its effects are unprecedented.

We have had to adapt our business operations to overcome the challenges at a staggering speed; during this time, our utmost priority has been the safety of customers and staff members.

Insurance used to be a more people oriented business built on relationships between the customer, insurance advisor and insurance company. But with the onset of the pandemic, we had to find alternative ways to reach customers and provide more access points to them.

In order to ensure uninterrupted insurance services to customers, SLIC has provided grace periods for them to settle their premiums because we understood the economic difficulties they faced during this time.

Q: How would you describe the competition – and what strategies do you employ to stay ahead?
A: SLIC operates in a very competitive and complex business environment with intense competition as there is huge untapped market potential.

There are local as well as international players in the market – and the latter bring global insights to the sector, which helps it to grow and expand.

As an insurer, we understand the pulse of the people; and we identify their needs and wants. We have the capacity and expertise to reach them, and meet their insurance needs. We keep pace with the competition through innovative insurance solutions for such needs and by embracing technology to deliver value.

Q: What are the organisation’s plans for this year?
A: We believe in giving back to our communities and serving them better, going beyond the mandate of insurance. To this end, we endeavour to extend protection to all affinity groups in Sri Lanka.

We’re striving to enhance the customer experience and create a long-lasting impact through demand generation, bringing all our customer touch points together. We leverage on our efficiency and profitability, by means of investment optimisation and smart spending to create wealth and generate value for our stakeholders.

In addition, we are strengthening our sales force to deliver superior value to customers.

Chandana L. Aluthgama
Chief Executive Officer
Telephone 2357357
Email email@srilankainsurance.com
Website www.srilankainsurance.com