Finwise

1. Exclusions:

Almost all health care policies come with exclusion i.e. no cover for treatment for a specific period or a specific time frame or a combination of both
• All treatments within the first 30 days of cover except any accidental injury are excluded
• Preexisting disease by definition are those disease which are in existence prior to opting for a health care policy and have to be mentioned in the proposal form for the policy to be valid. Treatment for preexisting disease is not covered generally for a period of 36 to 48 month from the time of taking the policy. The waiting period differs from policy to policy
• 2 years waiting period for specific diseases like cataract, hernia, joint replacement surgeries, surgery of hydrocele etc.
This list is indicative and not exhaustive, westrongly recommend you go through the exclusions in detail before opting for the policy

2. Cashless

Insurers or the third party administrators who facilitate insurers have to tie up with hospitals for cashless hospitalization, the list of hospitals where the insurance company have tie up is available easily and it is important to check the list to ascertain if there are adequate number of hospitals in the list and to find out if the hospital you are most likely to go it in case of a planned procedure is part of the list. While a hospital could be covered for cashless hospitalization at the time of taking the policy it is not necessary that this arrangement continues. It is quite possible that cashless facility with a particular hospital is discontinued at a later stage, therefore it is essential to check the list of hospitals for cashless facility on a periodic basis. While treatment is possible in hospital where the tie up does not exist, it comes with separate terms and conditions. The bill needs to be paid first and claimed later

3. Sub limits

Some policies have sub limits i.e there are predetermined maximum caps for certain procedures, room rent etc. This essentially means no matter what the cost of the procedure or room rent is, the policy will reimburse upto a predecided maximum cap. Example if you pay Rs. 5,000 per day for room charges and your policy has a sublimit of 2,000 per day for room charges you will only be reimbursed Rs. 2000 and the remaining Rs 3000 will have to be borne by you. It is desirable to have a policy which does not impose such limits. In case you have an existing policy this would be good time to understand the limits considering you are not in the midst of an emergency.

4. Renewability

Some policies have maximum coverage age beyond which they do not renew insurance. Since medical insurance is a yearly contract it is imperative to check this aspect. It has greater relevance given the fact that companies shy away from insuring an older person with preexisting diseases.

5. Adverse Loading

When there are claims against your policy some companies increase premium to compensate them for increased claims. Which means you may end up paying higher than normal premium charges for your age if you have claimed the previous year. Some do not indulge in such practices. Once your policy is accepted without any special conditions or additional loading, premiums are purely based on age.

6. No Claim Bonus

The reverse of the above is also true and all companies incentivize you for a claim free year, majority of them offer no claim bonus which is an increase in the sum assured this can range anywhere between 5% and 50% per year. Example Suppose X has a policy for 3 lakhs and does not have any claim in a particular year , in case of 5% NCB the sum insured will be 3,15,000 for the next year in case of 50% NCB the sum insured become 4.5 lakhs for the next year. The amount of no claim bonus depends on the policy opted for.

7. Co payments

Policies sometimes have Co -payment conditions. That is a certain percentage of the expenses incurred will have to be borne the insured. Example a 10000 policy with 20% co-payment rule requires that incase of claim of Rs.10000 you bear cost of Rs.20000 while the insurance company bears Rs.80,000 While some policies make this optional and give discounts in premium for opting for such a facility others have a mandatory rule.

8. Add on policies

As per many newspaper report medical costs are increasing at an alarming rate every year. If you have a basic insurance and now feel you are not adequately insured you can go in for an add-on policy which covers with a deductible. The premiums by virtue of design of these products are very low and affordable. It may be economical to opt for two polices one for basic and one with deductible to keep your premium at acceptable levels.
Deductible are amount beyond which the insurance company will entertain claims. Example if your policy is for 10 lakhs with a deductible of 3 lakhs it would mean that the company will entertain claims beyond 3 lakhs upto 13 lakhs. These policies also have terms and conditions and it is absolutely essential to understand them before you choose to go for it.
Should you have any further queries on the same feel free to drop in an email to prathiba.girish@finwise.in will be glad to be of assistance to you

Buying a car insurance has indeed become a breeze, thanks to online presence of General insurance companies you can switch, renew or buy afresh within minutes. Is the premium charged the only criteria for your choice of insurer? Cheapest premium does not necessarily mean value for your money. Hear is why.

Car insurance typically has two components to it
Third party liability insurance: this covers liability for injuries and damages to others that you are responsible for
&
Own Damage Cover: damage to the vehicle due to perils like fire, theft etc are usually covered under own damage section of the Motor Insurance policy:

While third party liability cover is compulsory as per the law, own damage cover is not. However it is advisable to go in for a policy which covers both. Policies covering both own damage and liability cover are normally referred to as Comprehensive package/ Policy. While the premium charged for third party liability is decamp by IRDA. The own cover premium is fixed by the insuring company.

1) The company charging you the cheapest premium may not necessarily mean value for your money

The premium charged for own cover is dependent on a lot of factors like IDV “Insured’s Declared Value”. IDV reflects the maximum amount payable by the company in case of a total loss of the vehicle. It is possible for a company to charge you a lower premium and provide you a lower IDV thereby limiting their liability in case of own damage.

Other factors which you should take into consideration for making an apple to apple comparison are deductibles and coverage. Deductible is the amount over and above, which the claim will be payable. There is a normal standard/ compulsory excess for most vehicles ranging from Rs. 50 for two wheelers to Rs. 500 for Private Cars and Commercial Vehicles which increases depending upon the cubic capacity/ carrying capacity of the vehicle. However, in some cases the insurer may impose additional excess. Higher educible reduce the premium.

2) You can port your policy from one company to another and carry forward your no claim bonus

Porting your policy from one company to another is actually simple, all you have to do is initiate the process a fortnight in advance, this is to ensure you have enough time to compare and renew without letting your existing policy lapse. No claim bonus is the discount give to you on your own damage premium for claim free year. The percentage of discount increases with every claim free year and is a maximum of 50%. No claim bonus will be carried forward to the new insurance company.

3) No claim bonus for your old car can be carried forward to your new car

This is something which most of us is unaware of, if you are upgrading you would be having insurance on your existing car which in all likelihood would be sold off. The no claim bonus that you have accumulated on your existing car can be carried forward to the new car.

The procedure is as follows. You can transfer the policy in the name of the buyer of the car and get a no claim bonus certificate or no claim bonus reservation letter from the insurance company. On producing this letter you can earn a discount on the premium. When you upgrade your car the price is substantial and transferring your no claim bonus could lead to good savings

4) Your policy can be transferred in the name of the person who buys your car from you.

The insurance can be transferred to the buyer of the vehicle, provided the seller informs in writing of such transfer to the insurance company. A fresh proposal form needs to be filled in. There is a nominal fee charged for transfer of insurance along with pro-rata recovery of NCB from the date of transfer till policy expiry. It may be noted that transfer of ownership in comprehensive/ package policies has to be recorded within 14 days from date of transfer failing which no claim will be payable for own damage to the vehicle

5) If you let your policy lapse you stand to lose out on benefits and face huge inconvenience in renewing the same.

If you let your policy lapse due to oversight or any other reason you could face a lot of inconvenience. If a lapsed comprehensive motor insurance policy requires renewal you need to fill up a fresh proposal as if you were insuring a new vehicle. The insurance company will offer the insurance only after a physical inspection of the car to check for pre existing damages which needless to say will not be covered by the insurance company. They may also charge you a higher premium or downright reject your proposal. If the policy is in lapsed state for 90 day and above you will lose out on the No claim bonus accumulated thus far. It is against the law to drive a vehicle without insurance and hence you will not be able to use your vehicle in the period when your lapsed policy has not been renewed. Any loss whether due to theft or natural calamities will not be covered in this period. It is therefore prudent to keep a close watch and renew insurance well in time to give you peace of mind.