Insurance | NIACL AO
NIACL AO sets 85 Reasoning Ability questions for 85 marks across 2 stages, so it is worth planning your preparation around the topics below.
The puzzles and seating arrangements carry the most marks and take the most time, so the skill is choosing which set to attempt and which to leave. Clear the quick scoring topics — inequality, syllogism, coding-decoding, blood relations — first, then spend the remaining time on one or two puzzles you can actually finish.
How much Reasoning Ability is worth in each NIACL AO stage, from the official pattern.
| Stage | Questions | Marks | Time | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preliminary Examination | 35 | 35 | 20 min | 35% |
| Main Examination (objective) | 50 | 50 | 40 min | 25% |
Every topic in the official syllabus. The linked ones open a set of solved questions you can practise straight away.
Written to the NIACL AO pattern, with the answer key and the method behind it — a look at how the section is actually set before you drill the full topic sets.
Blood relations · solved example
A woman said, 'The man in the picture is the father of the sister of my brother.' How is the man related to the woman?
Solution
The sister of the woman's brother is the woman herself (or another sister of hers). The father of that sister is the woman's own father, so the man in the picture is her father.
Direction sense · solved example
A boy walks 3 km towards the east, then turns and walks 4 km towards the north. How far (in km) is he now from his starting point?
Solution
The eastward and northward legs are at right angles, so the distance is the hypotenuse: sqrt(3^2 + 4^2) = sqrt(25) = 5 km.
Coding-decoding · solved example
In a certain code, FLOWER is written as HNQYGT. How is GARDEN written in that code?
Solution
Each letter moves two places forward in the alphabet: F to H, L to N, and so on. Applying the same to GARDEN gives G to I, A to C, R to T, D to F, E to G, N to P, that is ICTFGP.
Number series · solved example
Find the next number in the series: 3, 6, 11, 18, 27, ?
Solution
The differences grow through the odd numbers 3, 5, 7, 9, so the next difference is 11 and the next term is 27 + 11 = 38.
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Untimed drills with the method shown after every question — the step between learning a topic and sitting it under a clock.
Analogy and classification
81 questions, instant feedback
Blood relations and direction sense
108 questions, instant feedback
Seating arrangement
93 questions, instant feedback
Coding, decoding and series
135 questions, instant feedback
Order and ranking
69 questions, instant feedback
Puzzles
99 questions, instant feedback
Syllogism and inequality
126 questions, instant feedback
Reasoning Ability shows up in every NIACL AO mock test, in the same interface, with sectional locking and negative marking.
NIACL AO: 24-question practice mock
24 questions | 24 min
NIACL AO 2026 cycle (notification awaited) sets 85 Reasoning Ability questions for 85 marks, split across 35 in the Preliminary Examination and 50 in the Main Examination (objective).
Yes. NIACL AO deducts one fourth of a mark for each wrong answer, Reasoning Ability included, so unsure guesses cost you. One fourth of a mark is deducted for each wrong answer in the objective tests. Unanswered questions carry no penalty.
The NIACL AO syllabus lists Puzzles and seating arrangement, Syllogism and inequality, Coding and decoding, Blood relations and direction sense, Order, ranking and alphanumeric series, Input and output, data sufficiency and more. Weight your revision towards the ones you are weakest on and confirm the emphasis against the paper analysis for recent cycles.
Every Reasoning Ability question on this site is free and written to the exam pattern. Use the topic drills for instant-feedback practice, the daily quiz to keep the section warm, and the NIACL AO mock tests to sit it under a real clock with negative marking.