The Indian life insurance sector has witnessed significant structural and competitive changes after liberalisation, marked by the entry of private players alongside the public sector giant, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). In this evolving environment, understanding customer-centric performance indicators has become critical for insurers’ sustainability and growth. The present study empirically examines the performance of selected private life insurance players from a customer perspective, focusing on awareness, satisfaction, perception, reliability, and agent service quality. Using primary data collected from 452 respondents across semi-urban and rural areas, the study applies descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), Generalised Linear Model (GLM), and regression techniques. The results reveal that customer satisfaction and awareness of product variety significantly influence policy adoption, while agent service quality and scheme awareness act as key performance drivers. The study offers practical insights for private insurers to enhance customer engagement and improve market penetration in a competitive insurance landscape.