Indian insurers recast health cover as a Gen Z wellness product

Acko and peers are leaning into preventive care, telemedicine, AI-led discovery, YouTube and creator content as Gen Z researches insurance digitally. Policybazaar found 61% of Gen Z respondents had bought or considered health insurance, versus 19% for term cover.

— Source publishedWed, 16 Sept, 2026, 11:24 IST·First seen Thu, 17 Sept, 2026, 10:24 IST·Source ET BrandEquity

What happened

Acko · Indian insurers are repositioning health insurance around wellness, telemedicine and preventive care to attract Gen Z. Digital research, AI, YouTube and

Key facts

  • Policybazaar surveyed 4,620 Indians in 2025
  • 61% of Gen Z had bought or considered health insurance
  • 19% found term insurance compelling
  • 23% used AI for insurance research
  • 46% preferred YouTube for research
  • Digital allocations for younger audiences have risen from 20-30% to 50-70% or more
  • About one in three working Gen Zs planned to buy term insurance

Why this matters

Partnerships or acquisitions in telehealth, preventive wellness, AI guidance and creator-distribution platforms could help insurers build the daily-use relevance needed to capture Gen Z customers.

What to watch

  • Sustained increases in Gen Z health-policy renewals versus first-year purchases and lapses.
  • Growth in preventive-care, telemedicine and mental-health utilization among policyholders.
  • IRDAI guidance on influencer advertising, AI recommendations, wellness-linked pricing or health-data consent.
  • Rising customer complaints related to exclusions, denied claims or mis-selling through digital channels.
  • Insurer partnerships with wearables, fitness chains, digital pharmacies, diagnostics networks and employer-benefits platforms.
  • Whether term-insurance consideration rises after bundled health-and-life offerings are introduced.
  • Launch app-first health plans with teleconsultation, diagnostics, mental-health and preventive-care allowances.
  • Partner with gyms, wearable brands, pharmacy chains, nutrition platforms and diagnostic labs to create recurring engagement between premium payments and claims events.
  • Use creator content to explain exclusions, waiting periods, co-pays and claim processes, not just wellness benefits.
  • Build health-to-life conversion funnels: offer term-cover prompts after marriage, first job, home loans, parent coverage or childbirth planning.
  • Shift underwriting and retention models toward consented wellness engagement signals while maintaining clear privacy controls.
  • Create affordable monthly-payment and starter-policy tiers for first-time buyers.

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