A car insurance policy is a mandatory requirement as prescribed by the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. That is why every car driving on Indian roads carries a valid insurance cover. This cover comes in handy in times of any contingency involving the car. In case of accidents or facing car related damages, a claim arises in the car insurance policy. There are three instances of car insurance claims which are as follows:
The most common instance of claim is when the car is involved in an accident. In an accident, three types of claims might arise.
When the car is stolen, a theft claim arises.
Whether your car is involved in an accident or it is stolen, you are required to follow a proper procedure to make a car insurance claim. Here are the steps to be followed in each of the above-mentioned instances of claims.
Car insurance claims are of two types – cashless and reimbursement. Here’s what these claims are:
under cashless claims, you get the car repaired at the preferred workshop and once your vehicle is ready workshop mails the bills to the insurance company. The insurance company releases its liability and you have to just pay the difference amount and take the delivery of your vehicle (Difference Amount = Total Bill Amount – Insurance Co Liability Share).
when the car is repaired at a non-networked garage, once your vehicle repair work is completed you have pay the complete bill amount and take the delivery of your vehicle and submit original bills to surveyor. On receiving the bill the insurance company will reimburse the approved amount via NEFT to the insured’s account in 8 to 10 working days.
There are things which should be kept in mind when making a car insurance claim. These things, if considered, help in getting the claim settled quickly. Here are the things which should be kept in mind at the time of claim:
There is a component of compulsory excess in a car insurance policy. This excess represents the portion of claim payable by you. In every claim, you would have to compulsorily bear the excess.
Similarly, there is also a concept of voluntary excess. However, unlike compulsory excess which is mandatory, voluntary excess is chosen by you. If you choose voluntary excess, you would have to pay the chosen portion of claim. Voluntary excess, if chosen, earns you a premium discount.
Engine capacity determines the third party premium which is a component of premium calculation. Higher the engine capacity higher would be the car insurance premium.
If your car is being repaired, depreciation would be applicable on the parts being repaired. The insurance company would, thus, pay a portion of the actual bills after deducting the applicable depreciation (On Plastic Parts 50% on Metal Parts – As per Vehicle Age, & on Glass No Depreciation ) You would, then, have to bear the cost of depreciation and pay the unsettled claim yourself.
Cashless claims are settled only if the car is repaired at a preferred garage. So, before taking your car for repairs, check the preferred garages in the area. You can also find the garage from the insurance company’s toll free number while registering the claim and take the car to the networked garage.
When no claim is made in a policy year, the car insurance policy allows a premium discount in the next year’s premium. This discount increases every subsequent claim-free year. If, however, a claim is made, the discount becomes zero. So, avoid making small claims. Pay the repair costs of smaller claims from your own pockets to avoid losing the accumulated no claim discount.
Every claim requires a valid set of documents which should be submitted along with the claim form. Some common documents include copies of the diving license, RC book, policy bond and FIR, if applicable. So, when making a claim, make sure that the relevant documents are handy.
Add-ons are additional coverage features which enhance the scope of coverage of the car insurance plan. If you have selected add-ons in the policy, see if the add-on proves useful at the time of claim. For instance, if you have a roadside assistance add-on and your car is stranded in the middle of the road, you can call the insurance company and use the add-on for arranging assistance. Similarly, in case of a zero depreciation add-on, the insurance company would pay the full claim, without deducting depreciation. So, see if the selected add-ons are being used in case of your claim.
A comprehensive car insurance policy allows optional add-ons which help in increasing the scope of coverage. Each add-on, however, requires the payment of an additional premium. Thus, if an add-on is selected in the policy, the premium increases.
There are instances when your car insurance claim might get rejected. These instances include the following:
There are instances when your car insurance claim might get rejected. These instances include the following:
In case of rejection of your car insurance claim, you can take the following steps:
Turtlemint is an online platform which not only helps with the purchase of a car insurance policy online it also helps with claim settlement. Turtlemint has a claim handling department which helps you with your car insurance claims. You can contact Turtlemint in case of a claim and Turtlemint then coordinates with the insurance company with the settlement of your claim. Thus, Turtlemint helps in easy and speedy settlement of your car insurance claims.
You can find the list of tied-up garages on your insurance company’s website. Moreover, at the time of a claim, the insurance company, when notified, informs you about the nearest preferred garage where you can take your car for cashless repairs.
Yes, in each instance of claim the surveyor visits the garage to inspect the damages occurred. It is only after submission of the surveyor’s report that the claim is approved and the repair works begin.
An engine protect add-on covers the damages suffered by the car’s engine due to water-logging. Thus, in case of a claim due to damage of the car’s engine because of water-logging, engine protect rider ensures claim settlement.
In case of repairs at a non-networked garage, you would have to pay for the repair costs yourself. The bills would have to be collected and submitted with the insurance company for a reimbursement claim