Group Personal Accident Insurance — Employer Schemes

One master policy

Group personal accident (GPA) insurance is a single master policy taken by an employer or other organisation to cover a defined group, such as its employees. It gives each member the kinds of benefit an individual personal accident policy gives, under one contract.

The roles are distinct. The employer is the policyholder: it buys the master policy, usually pays the premium, administers the policy and coordinates claims. Each employee is an insured member. When a claim arises, the benefit is paid to the member, or to the member's nominee on death.

What the employer and insurer agree

The benefits offered, the sum insured for each grade of staff and the premium are agreed between the employer and the insurer. One employer may cover accidental death and permanent disability only; another may add weekly benefits or accident medical expenses. The master policy and its benefit schedule state what applies.

The percentages and limits inside the schedule are product features, as in an individual policy. A member's entitlement is read from the master policy, not from any general table.

When a member leaves

Cover under a group policy is tied to membership of the group, so it normally ends when the employee leaves the organisation. Whether the insurer then offers an individual policy depends on the insurer.

IRDAI's portability provisions are written for indemnity health policies, so a right to carry group personal accident cover to another insurer cannot be assumed.

The employer's statutory liability is separate

An employer has a statutory liability to compensate employees for work injuries under the Code on Social Security, 2020, which has been in force since 21 November 2025 (earlier the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923). A group personal accident policy is a separate contract between the employer and the insurer. It does not by itself discharge that liability.

The two can exist side by side for the same accident. Whether any amount paid under the policy can be adjusted against the statutory compensation depends on the facts and on the policy.

Group cover and individual cover together

Accidental death cover is a fixed benefit, so each policy that covers the death pays its own amount. An employee covered under the employer's group policy and under a personal policy of their own leaves the family a claim on both. Benefit policies are not shared between insurers in the way indemnity claims are.

Rules at a glance

Key points

• A group personal accident policy is one master policy covering a defined group, such as an employer's staff.
• The employer is the policyholder; each employee is an insured member, and the benefit goes to the member or the nominee.
• The benefits, the sum insured for each grade and the premium are agreed between the employer and the insurer.
• A member's cover normally ends on leaving the group; any individual policy afterwards depends on the insurer.
• The policy does not by itself discharge the employer's statutory liability for work injuries under the Code on Social Security, 2020.
• Fixed benefits under a group policy and an individual policy are each paid in full.

Common misunderstandings

• The employee is not the policyholder: the employer holds the master policy, and the employee is an insured member.
• A group personal accident policy does not replace the employer's statutory liability: compensation for work injuries under the Code on Social Security, 2020 remains a separate obligation.
• Group cover does not travel with the employee: it normally ends on leaving, and any individual policy afterwards depends on the insurer.
• A group benefit does not normally reduce an individual policy's benefit: each fixed-benefit policy pays its own amount unless its wording says otherwise.

Questions people ask