The new business premium (NBP) of life companies was up more than 22% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in September to Rs 31,001 crore. While private insurers, 23 in total, saw their NBP go up more than 42%, state-owned insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) saw a 12% rise. The top three private insurers--SBI Life, HDFC Life, and ICICI Prudential Life--recorded a NBP growth of 30.5%, 37.5%, and 20.8% in the same period. Rushabh Gandhi, Deputy CEO, Indiafirst Life Insurance said, "Life insurance industry's Y-o-Y growth has picked up admirably in the recent months. The economy has been faring well with the gradual receding of Covid-19. Increasing interest and awareness about insurance amongst people is also aiding growth. The growth can also be partially attributed to the base effect of H1 last year which was marred by the lockdown. Also, there is speculation around an increase in mortality premiums and this is causing customers to fast track their decision to buy". Experts have also pointed out that typically the quarter-ending month sees higher premiums because bancassurance partners of life companies push the sale of insurance products aggressively to shore up their fee income. NBP is the premium acquired from new policies in a particular year.