10 Interesting Facts You Must Know About Car Insurance

Getting a third-party liability insurance is mandatory in India. But you should invest in a comprehensive cover to ensure that you do not suffer losses in case your car suffers damage due to an accident or you sustain injuries in a car crash. You will easily find the details about the coverage online. Here are some interesting facts you must know as well:

While a third-party liability insurance can result in high pay-outs based on the damage the third-party sustains, the cover for almost everything else is capped based on the value of the component/car involved. This allows the add-on covers that most insurers offer to be comparatively cheaper. For example, if you choose to get your car accessories insured – the cost would be a fraction of the comprehensive cover that you get.

If you let your policy lapse, most insurer will look at you as irresponsible – and hence consider insuring you riskier than the average driver. This would result in your next comprehensive policy being costlier. Further, if you meet with an accident after your policy lapses, you will not get any coverage and will have to bear all the damages yourself.

Your insurer decides on your premium based on what they believe they may have to pay out in case of a loss event. A higher deductible would mean that they will have to pay less, and therefore they would charge a lower premium. However, it is important to remember that deductible is the amount you will have to pay out-of-pocket in case of a loss-event. Therefore, you must be sure that you are comfortable with the deductible agreed upon.

Insurance discounts can potentially make a big difference to the insurance premium you will have to pay. Make sure to check with your insurer on discounts that may be available to you. You could get discounts for anti-theft devices installed, safety features in your car, making the payment online, getting a multi-year cover among others. Don’t forget to use your no claim bonus as well.

If you are a safe driver and do not make any claims during the policy period – the insurer will reward you with a no claim bonus. If you upgrade your car, you don’t have to let go of the cumulative NCB. You can simply transfer it to the insurance for the new car. If you choose to switch your insurer, you can still transfer the cumulative NCB to the new policy.

Whenever you file a claim against your car insurance policy, the depreciation charges are deducted from the cost of components before the claim amount is decided on. With a zero depreciation cover, you will get compensated for the price of the component including the depreciation. While getting a zero-depreciation cover would increase the premium a little, it is worth the extra coverage you get.

Any items inside a car that gets stolen, or any items that are damaged in an accident are not typically covered by your car insurance.

Roadside assistance is an add-on cover which ensures that you do not get stuck on the road if your car breaks down, you run out of fuel, your battery fails or if you end up locking yourself out without the keys. This add-on cover ensures that help reaches you when you need it the most. Insurance company such as Bharti AXA GI offers roadside assistance.

If you have multiple vehicles that many in your family use, you would have to shell big bucks to get all of them covered. Instead of getting individual policies, you can ask your insurer to bundle insurance for all the cars and save a considerable amount.

While the rates for third-party liability cover are decided by the insurance regulator, the premiums for all other covers vary from one insurer to another. You should always compare the prices across insurers before deciding on which car insurance policy to purchase.