Union Assurance, Sri Lanka’s longest-standing private Life Insurer, has been recognised as a Model Insurer for Customer Experience at the prestigious Celent Model Insurer Awards 2026, setting a global benchmark for the Life Insurance industry and showcasing leadership in technology-driven transformation.
Widely regarded as one of the insurance industry’s most respected recognitions, the annual Model Insurer Awards by Celent, a global research and advisory firm for the financial services industry, recognise insurance carriers for outstanding technology initiatives that demonstrate clear business impact, innovation, and technology or implementation excellence.
The recognition was awarded for Union Assurance’s Connected Life Initiative, a transformative programme delivering a seamless, end-to-end digital experience across the customer lifecycle. It spans insurance education, purchase, underwriting, servicing, and claims, alongside integrated wellness solutions that support customer well-being. Powered by the Union Assurance Clicklife App, Sri Lanka’s first and most comprehensive digital Life Insurance ecosystem, the initiative is redefining how customers access, manage, and engage with Life Insurance empowering them to better protect what matters most.
The programme integrates co-banking data prefill, a digital medical results exchange platform, and automated underwriting to deliver near-instant protection with zero physical paperwork. Customers benefit from 24/7 self-service supported by agent-assisted digital channels and can submit claims in under two minutes, with real-time tracking at every step. Extending beyond transactions, the initiative also introduces Clicklife Suwamaga+, an AI-powered wellness ecosystem offering nutrition tracking, activity monitoring, gamified health challenges, and CSR-linked health awareness, extending the role of financial protection seamlessly into customers’ everyday lives.
Fostering continuous engagement between policy milestones, the initiative has delivered significant impact, surpassing 100,000 app downloads, achieving a 69% straight-through processing rate for automated underwriting, and reducing claims processing effort by over 80%, cutting handling time from 25–30 minutes to approximately five minutes. This performance reinforces Union Assurance’s leadership in digital innovation within Sri Lanka’s Life Insurance landscape.
“The Model Insurer Awards recognise how insurers are leveraging technology to fundamentally transform the insurance experience,” says Keith Raymond, Principal Analyst at Celent. “The Union Assurance Connected Life Initiative is a standout example – demonstrating how best in class innovation is transforming Life Insurance through a digital customer experience.”
Commenting on the award, Senath Jayatilake, Director and Chief Executive Officer at Union Assurance, said, “We are honoured to receive this recognition for a second time, joining an elite group of global insurers that have earned the Celent Model Insurer award more than once. As the only Sri Lankan insurer ever recognised on this global stage, and now the only one to be recognised twice, this achievement reflects the strength of our capabilities measured against the very best in the world. Having first been recognised in 2020 for transforming our core technology, and now in 2026 for transforming the customer experience, we have shown consistent excellence across the full arc of digital transformation. I commend our team for their dedication in consistently raising the bar, and reaffirm our commitment to shaping a more connected, accessible and customer centric insurance experience for all Sri Lankans.”
Harsha Senanayake, Chief Information Officer at Union Assurance, added, “What makes this recognition especially meaningful is Union Assurance’s digital roadmap. Our core technology modernisation, recognised by Celent five years ago, was a bold first step. We have built on it since, leading Sri Lanka with a series of firsts: Clicklife, the country’s first insurance super app spanning the full customer lifecycle with the AI powered Suwamaga+ wellness ecosystem, the first move to 100% digital submissions, and the first adoption of electronic medical and lab reports. Winning across two distinct disciplines, five years apart, reflects consistent execution and a clear long-term vision. Engineered in-house by Sri Lankan talent, this affirms our vision to become the number one digital insurer, and we will keep building on it by adopting the next wave of AI to enhance the customer experience and deliver greater value to our stakeholders.”
Union Assurance is a subsidiary of John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), the largest conglomerate listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange, operating with over 80 companies in 7 diverse industry sectors. The Company has completed nearly four decades of success with a Market Capitalisation of Rs. 40.6 Bn and a Life Fund of Rs. 96.2 Bn as of end March 2026. Set to protect lives and enrich the well-being of all Sri Lankans, Union Assurance offers Life Insurance solutions that cover the health, investment, protection, retirement and education needs of Sri Lankans. With an island-wide branch network and a workforce that is over 3000-strong, Union Assurance continues to invest in people, products and processes with a customer-centric focus to be responsive to emerging changes in the Life Insurance industry.
Union Assurance PLC is licensed by the Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL).
