Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has rejected allegations by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) that it receives preferential treatment from the Indian government. LIC clarified that it is treated like any other insurance company by the Government and Regulators.

USTR in its National Trade Estimate 2025 report, claims that the Indian government’s explicit sovereign guarantee on every LIC policy results in customers choosing LIC over private insurers, giving the state-owned company an unfair competitive advantage.

In a statement, LIC said that the guarantee - provided at the time of its establishment in 1956, is a statutory provision designed to build public confidence in the early years of nationalisation. It has never been invoked or used as a marketing tool or provided any undue advantage to LIC.

“For the past 25 years, LIC has operated in a fully competitive market alongside 24 private life insurance companies. It is regulated by IRDAI and Sebi and receives no special treatment from the Government or any regulatory authority,” the insurer said.