Why We Need To Buy General Insurance

In a nutshell, buying General insurance is about managing risk.

Most frequently used as a means of managing financial uncertainty, insurance exists to provide peace of mind should anything happen to you, your loved ones, your investments or your business.

Why everyone needs general insurance

Glass breakage is common around the home – especially with a summer of backyard cricket underway.

While it is tempting to think “it would never happen to me”, ask yourself what would be the cost financially – not to mention emotionally – should the worst happen and you lost everything through no fault of your own?

He says the first thing people should do when considering seeking cover is to talk to their chosen provider about their lifestyle and how it can be protected – no matter what stage of life they’re at – whether young or young at heart, home-owner or renter, employed or looking for work.

While most insurance providers attempt to provide the most comprehensive cover they can, it is always worth reading the small print to ensure you are getting the best bang for your buck.

To help mitigate some of the issues faced by its policyholders in the event of obvious disasters such as fire, flood or theft or smaller everyday disasters such as accidental breakage, AMI policies offer a number of unique features not offered by some of its competitors.

“We recognise that glass breakage is pretty common, especially with summer here and backyard cricket starting up – that’s why our policies give you the option to remove the excess for glass breakage,” says Tippet.

Policies can also include something as simple as cover for Christmas presents stolen while kept in the home, while legal liability under standard contents cover with AMI means you may even be covered for accidental damage to someone else’s property, he says.

We also offer more flexibility when it comes to car insurance.

“Most insurers only cover rental cars if you’re left without your own car while our policies include substitute transport costs including any combination of rental car, taxis and public transport – there’s even the option of additional cover for medical expenses.”

To help make the process even easier also boasts its own smartphone and tablet app –We Assist – that as well as simplifying the claims process and detailing the fine print, also has special offers on everything from carwashes to WOFs.

Source:  [ 

http://blogs.rediff.com/generalinsurance/2016/06/28/buy-general-insurance/ ]

INSURANCE

General Insurance

One of the fastest growing General Insurance companies in India and also won awards for Best General Insurance Company & Claims Innovation awards.

What is New - General Insurance in India

Post de-tariffing of market in 2007 the general insurers in India have free market approach to price their products except for motor third party insurance. Sustainable growth is the life line for any business and insurance is no exception to it. Insurers must have the 360 degree view of their business .The Regulator, who watches the interest of the policyholders, however observed that despite its advisories the free market regime coupled with intense competition amongst insurers & their obsession for the top-line is resulting into deficient assessment of insurable risks, in corporate sector, and that the prices are offered to these corporate clients for property insurance and group health insurance at non-viable rates which are ultimately subsidized by the buyers of retail products. Due to aggressive competition the insurers were offering heavy discounts on portfolio basis to retain their accounts and were quoting less than 10 to 20% below the estimated outgo in group health segment to attract new corporate. 

These corporate with loss making group health covers continue to escape price hikes by shopping for new insurers. The chase to build up top line and the pressure on marketing force of the insurers for their targets resulted in health insurers willingness to accept the business even not covering expected claim cost ignoring loading for medical inflation, acquisition cost , servicing cost by third party administrators and management expenses. 

In a bid to address this issue and to bring corporate governance in the business behaviour of the insurers the Authority has prescribed its pricing prescription which is applicable with the 1st day of 2015. The Authority's prescription for pricing fire, property and group health insurance is to consider Burning Cost as starting point to price these risks. This only can move market forward towards claim plus pricing mechanism. Burning cost is the estimated cost of claims in proposed insurance period and is calculated from previous year claim experience of the insurer duly adjusted for change in number of lives and for changes in the benefit design proposed for current year of the risk. IRDA in its advisory and prescription has made it very clear that industry-wide losses should be considered for pricing the product and insurers current level experience of acquisition and management expenses should be loaded to it. 

The industry-wide burning cost is available with IIB (Insurance Information Bureau of India) for Fire and Property Insurance but such industry-wide burning cost for group health is not available. The Authority is also aware that brokers are not disclosing all details of group health experience to insurers at the time of RFQ (request for quote). In health insurance the trend & incidence rate usually does not vary from year to year. However, the average claim cost bears the impact of medical inflation to some extent. Till the IIB is ready with the industry-wide Burning cost in group health segment the authority has tightened the reporting parameters. It has prescribed that the intermediary or the client will mandatory have to sign and disclose the claim cost of last year and preceding two years in the input format designed by General Insurance Council of India (GI Council). This will surely improve the disclosure and will put insurers in a better position to assess the risk on quality data necessary to price the risk.

With uniform data now available to underwriters if any of them choose to price the group health risk lower than burning cost than it will have to have the approval of its Board of Directors. Further this will have to be filed in form of Exception Report in a format to be designed by IRDA.

The Regulator has initiated this move to see right pricing coming into the market and corporate governance in the business behaviour of the insurers. The move signals that premium for this fastest growing portfolio would be rising in last quarter of 2014-15 or else there will be reduction in the benefits including caps beings introduced for procedures or else employers will seek sharing of cost from employees for present benefit design of their health protection covers.

[Source: http://vinay-verma.blogspot.in/2015/01/burning-cost-prescription-by-indian.html]

What is the importance of general insurance cover?

Life is full of joy and happiness if you have plenty of money, good house, a luxurious car, good health and lavish lifestyle. But you many never know when you might come across an unexpected calamity or incidence that can damage your valuable belongings or endanger your life. In this era of high uncertainty spiral inflation rate, the dangers posed to our prized possession have reached new heights. The best way to protect ourselves by getting dump in the manhole of financial losses would be getting it insured at the right time. Today, insurance is becoming a necessity more than just a utility. Safeguarding your belongings accumulated through years of hard work is the right thing to do and this is where different type of insurance service provider plays a pivotal role.

The insurance that protect our belonging and covers our health is known as “general insurance”. While market are filled with variety of customized policies you can choose the best suitable for you depending upon your income sources, asset value, place of living and other factors. You can either visit the branch or call up customer service or buy from agents. But one of the best and modern day convenient ways to buy general insurance policies would be online purchase.

Today, the educated section is purchasing policies online. The purchase of non-life insurance policies in the country is on rise. More and more people from metropolitan, town cities and even rural areas prefer buying polices online.  The ease of purchase and convenience of buying it anytime and anywhere are the primary drivers for policy purchase online. Many insurers have started realizing this. They have created separate verticals to exploit this segment.

General insurance segment of India comprises of a wide array of insurance such as health insurance, motor insurance, home insurance, travel, fire and business insurance, lifestyle insurance and other forms. Experts say the thrust of this insurance segment is inclined toward business verticals and cater to giant corporate clients as well.

There are around 20+ general insurance players in markets and some more large international ones are expected to enter shortly. These companies have come up with innovative ideas and customized ways of policies for offering the existing and prospective customers, new technology platforms that would keep their business update to date and organized and would also be beneficial to them.

While purchasing policies it is important to follow some guidelines:

Also, take policies depending upon your income sources. Never exceed premium costs more than income sources else if you cannot pay certain premium it might lapse.

Make a note of each and every valuable possession in your house, about family health issues and pre-existing diseases,  your car inclusions and exclusions, property value etc. depending upon the type of policy you wish to purchase.

Always keep all the policy documents and other necessary documents handy with scanned copy on your email account so that you can easily produce them at the time of insurance claim.

Ensure that you keep on regularly updating your possession in house, business expansion updates, property purchase updates and health updates time-to-time with the insurance company. Make sure you incorporate these things in the insurance policy.

Produce the requisite FIR (incase of valuables being stolen) or other reports as required at the time of claims. Good and reputed general insurance companies will let you compare quotes with their top competitors before signing up for polices. Using a couple of insurance calculators is an excellent method to make sure you get precise quotes as per your requirements. 

General Insurance

Travel Insurance Companies

https://www.bajajallianz.com/Corp/travel-insurance/travel-insurance.jsp

Medical Travel Insurance

7 Travel Insurance Tips for Your Next Vacation

The news of the cruise ship disaster off the coast of Italy was particularly noteworthy for my family. On April 1, we set sail on a seven-day Caribbean cruise. My daughter is already freaking out, and my son is not helping matters. He’s plastered pictures of the Costa Concordia all over the house.

One issue the tragedy has brought into focus for us is travel insurance. My travel agent and I discussed travel insurance when I booked our cruise. Frankly, after spending thousands of dollars on airfare and a cruise, spending even more money on insurance is not my idea of a good time. But because of the cost of our trip, it’s an issue we can’t afford to avoid.

While I’m not an expert in travel insurance, my research has been quite revealing.

1. Only insure what you can’t afford to lose. Not every trip needs travel insurance companies. If your potential loss is a few hundred dollars in airfare, travel insurance is probably not worth the cost or aggravation. On the other hand, a once-in-a-lifetime $20,000 vacation is worth protecting. In this way, travel insurance is no different than most other types of insurance.

2. There are many options. Before my research, I assumed there was just one type of travel insurance. In turns out that there are many types, including travel insurance for trip cancellation, trip interruption, medical, lost baggage, evacuation, and flight insurance. My primary concern is trip cancellation insurance, but there are many options to consider. Many travel insurance companies offer bundled insurance packages that combine two or more types of travel insurance.

3. Age matters. Whether it’s medical insurance or trip cancellation insurance, your physical health is an important factor in determining a premium. While you won’t have to get a physical like you would with life insurance, your age will affect the cost of the insurance.

4.  Health insurance may not cover you. I was also surprised to learn that not all health insurance policies, including Medicare, cover you overseas or on a cruise flying under a foreign flag. The key is to contact your health insurance provider to find out what coverage you do have when you’re traveling. Only then can you make an informed decision about this type of travel insurance.

5. Timing issues. I was surprised to learn from my travel agent that we didn’t have to decide on travel insurance when we booked our cruise. In fact, you can buy travel insurance just days before your departure. This are risks, however, in waiting. Some types of travel insurance may require you to purchase the insurance within a set time period after you’ve booked your travel. And for trip cancellation insurance, you won’t be covered if you buy the insurance after you’ve become ill or the hurricane has wiped out your vacation destination.

6. Costs vary. It’s wise to compare costs before making a decision. While your travel agent will have options for you, they may not be the best or the least expensive. Some of the more well-known travel insurance companies include Access America, Travel Guard, and Travel Insured. And you can use sites like insuremytrip.com to compare travel insurance options.

7. Travel rewards cards won't help. At first I assumed that a top-notch travel rewards credit card would have some travel insurance. But apart from limited baggage insurance, accident insurance, and rental car insurance with some cards, however, travel insurance is not part of the benefits. If you want trip cancellation or interruption insurance, you'll have to buy it.

[Sourse: http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2012/01/19/7-travel-insurance-tips]

General Insurance

Health Insurance by Life and General Insurance Cos

By now you know how the increasing cost of hospitalization and healthcare expenses have made health insurance an inevitable necessity for all, right? Let’s now understand how buying health insurance from a general insurance company and a health policy from a life insurance company can mean two totally different things. And it is when you know this difference, can you select the best for yourself and can you avail of all the benefits you are entitled to.

Health insurance vis-à-vis General Insurance Company: (or non-life insurance)

Any insurance which is non-life insurance typically falls under the category of General health Insurance. This includes insurance for myriad things including car, fire, travel, household, marine etc. But this is not all. As general insurance pertains to non-life insurance, it also includes Health Insurance, wherein a person insures his and his family’s health against hospitalization due to various unforeseen ailments and growing medical expenses.

Hence, health insurance comes under general insurance as the latter provides protection against unforeseen events such as accidents, illness, et al. General insurance companies offer health policies which are mainly short term in nature. This means, that the health insurance policies can be renewed year after year and the premium amount varies with age.

Health insurance covers offered under general insurance, include mainly hospitalization covers either on reimbursement or cashless basis. The Third Party Administrators (TPAs) mainly offer cashless service as they have arrangements with various hospitals, who are the service providers. The TPAs also help in reimbursement claims.

Health insurance vis-à-vis Life insurance Company:

Many of us tend to confuse health insurance or mediclaim with life insurance. Though, both of them are vastly different in structure and content, while health insurance primarily caters to your health related expenses until you are alive, life insurance typically means insuring a person’s life wherein the returns are accrued due to your death or at the end of the term of the policy.

There are various life insurance companies that offer health benefits and packages. Firstly, the health related policies under life insurance companies cover certain critical illnesses. For example, certain private companies that offer life insurance to customers cover about 36 critical illnesses which include heart attacks, stroke, cancer, paralysis etc. Now this in turn means that once a person visits a doctor for treatment, and if the doctor then after diagnosis confirms a serious illness, then on the basis of the doctor’s report, the insured will get a lump sum amount from the company.

[Source:http://www.medimanage.com/my-health-insurance/articles/health-insurance-by-life-and-general-insurance-cos.aspx]

Be Forearmed with Travel Insurance When You Travel

We work for a decent living. First and foremost the physiological needs – food, clothing and shelter. Once these needs are met, we turn to recreation. Recreation can be as small as going out to watch a movie or going abroad to see new places.

Traveling is said to improve our understanding of the world we live in. It makes us understand how our fellow inhabitants of Earth go about living their lives. It makes us realize how small the issues we crib about are when compared to troubles faced by the less privileged. Not only is traveling recreation, it is the ultimate teacher of life.

We travel for many reasons, to see places, on business, to attend a function, to witness an event, or on diplomatic missions. It involves moving from one place to another and spending some days in the destination. You are removed from the safer confines of your home.

At each point in travel, there are possibilities of something going wrong. Seldom may such inconveniences happen, when they happen, they may lead to a lot of troubles. Remember, problems in life strike us when we least expect them. It is better not only to be forewarned, but also to be forearmed.

Cheap Travel Insurance takes a lot of worries out of travel. Like any insurance cover, travel insurance provides for unforeseen, unpleasant events, so that the tour you have taken for pleasure doesn’t leave you poorer. With years of experience, travel insurance companies provide cover for such happenings that are likely to happen and should they actually happen, the insured is financially covered.

Our health is of utmost importance of everything else. Almost all travel insurance policies provide adequate cover for medical emergencies, from hospitalization costs to medicines. While they don’t cover pre-existing medical conditions, most of the unforeseen medical emergencies are covered.

Changes to ones travel itinerary that are forced upon one, may be because of adverse weather conditions, unrest, or any extraneous factors, can be quite inconvenient. Should your itinerary be disturbed because of any such events, travel insurance ensures you are compensated for it. Lost or stolen baggage on a tour, particularly if you are carrying something valuable such as jewellery, will make you wish you had never taken that journey.

If you have purchased a policy that adequately covers the value of items in your baggage, it will leave you with that peace of mind that is so important when you are traveling. Sometimes even a delayed baggage might force you to buy emergency items you are carrying in your bag, and travel insurance comes to your help.

There may be instances when regular travel insurance may not address your specific need, which you might have to separately purchase, such as traveling to high-risk countries, traveling to indulge in sports that have some elements of risk such as scuba diving or skiing, when you have some pre-existing condition which you want to be covered, etc.

Though you may have to spend a little extra compared to regular travel insurance, the knowledge that if anything goes wrong, you are not left to fend for yourself, is reassuring.

[Source: http://www.01webdirectory.com/blog/be-forearmed-with-travel-insurance-when-you-travel/]

General Insurance

Today life insurance is too common for us and most of us are still not fully aware of other sort of insurances. General insurance is the oldest and productive insurance for any insurer. General insurance offers us to live free and safe, anytime and anywhere. General Insurance can be simply defined as a non life insurance. Insurance that cover anything other than your life is known as general insurance such as motor insurance, health, fire insurance and many others. General insurance is a contract between two parties, insurer and insured. Insurer is organization or a company and insured might be an individual or item or goods or organization.

Under this contract, insurer guarantees the insured to cover him against non life mis-happening in future. General insurance has been introduced many centuries back by Babylon tribes as they offer security to the merchants for safely delivery of their goods and against it they receive extra amount on the contracted amount. Since then general insurance has spread all over the world and form into a business. General insurance is not only a business rather it offer you security against your property, goods, office and health. Here are types of general insurance offered by some of the leading organizations.

Types of General Insurance –

·         Auto Insurance – Auto Insurance is the most popular and demanded insurance all over the world. Under this insurance, insurance company covers your vehicle or motor with insurance against theft, loss or accident. On such cases, insurance company will pay back the insured amount to the owner of the vehicle or motor.

·         Health Insurance – Another most demanded insurance plan now days. Health is the main concern these days and people have to spend huge part of their income on the medical and hospital expenses. Insurance companies cover an individual or a group of individual such as family against health concern. With this cover, insurer guarantees to bear total hospital and medical expenses occurred on insured person or group.

·         Liability Insurance – This insurance is specially designed for corporate organizations. Under this insurance plan, insurer covers the liability of the insured corporate and in case of bankruptcy, insurer is liable to clear all the debts and liabilities of the company or individual.

·         Home Insurance – Home insurance is for household. Under this insurance plan, insurer provide cover or protection to the insured person’s house against disaster and hazards such as fire and natural hazards. In case of destruction of house under proclaimed norms or cases of insurer, insurer is liable to pay the cost of house reestablishment.

·          Marine Insurance – Marine Insurance is generally taken by such corporate organizations who operate on seas such as cargo, logistics and many other. With this insurance cover, insurer guarantees to pay the amount of loss due to water while shipment to the insured company or individual.

·         Fire Insurance – Fire Insurance is one such insurance plan which one can commonly find in any organization or home. Under this insurance plan, insurer is liable to pay the compensation for losses due to fire to the insured house or organization.

·         Property Insurance – This is a new insurance plan which defines to offer protection to the insured person’s property against natural hazard, theft, mishap or accidents. This plan is for both movable and non-movable properties.

·         Pecuniary Insurance – Pecuniary Insurance plan is one of the best plans of its type. Under this plan, an individual or group get insured for his wealth or money against any inconsequence such as loss, theft, miscarriage or any other. Insurer guarantees to pay for the value of his insured wealth in such mishaps in future.

·         Aviation Insurance – Aviation insurance is a high profile plan and differs on its basis. Aviation Insurance could be for an individual or for an organization. Under this plan for an individual, one gets insured for his or her air travel and insurer pays the insured amount against the loss in case of any mishaps during the air travel. Another for an organization, aviation companies gets the insurance for their flights against any accident in air.

·         Cattle Insurance – Cattle insurance is for the agricultural or rural individuals who get this insurance for the cattle such as cow, bull, sheep and many other against their losses in future. It helps them to minimize their loss due to the loss of their productive cattle.

·         Accident Insurance – Last but not the least, accident insurance is another most popular and demanding insurance in market. Under this insurance plan, insurer guarantees to bear all the expenses occurred on medical and pathological of the insured person due to accident.

      [Source: http://blogs.rediff.com/generalinsurance/2016/02/04/general-insurance-2/]

How to Choose Travel Insurance – 3 Best & Cheapest Options

What are the best travel insurances on the market?

Well, this will depend mostly on where are you from and what kind of coverage you want for your trip. If you research on the internet, you should be able to find a lot of options.

However, I have already researched A LOT have compared a lot of travel insurances and I always end up with the 3 online options that follow: 

The cheapest travel insurance on the market!!

Seriously, if you can find a cheaper travel insurance than this one, which works for citizens from all over the world, please let me know. As I have not found anything cheaper, I like to use  Medical (Atlas Travel) when I’m traveling to a “safe” place where I’ll be visiting mostly cities, such as United States or Europe, and I know I won’t be doing anything crazy. To be honest, I’ve thankfully never had to actually use any travel insurance so I’m not sure how the compensation services work. But I searched for reviews about Medical (Atlas Travel) and it looks like it worked fine for others who did have to use it. It’s really a great option if you are looking for cheap travel insurance.  

As I mentioned before, it is an international cheap travel insurance that accepts citizens from all over the world, with a few exceptions. Since it is cheaper than others, however, it may not cover all types of extreme activities. So, if you want to buy it, just make sure it covers the activities you intend to do as well as your nationality. It’s suitable for trips of any lengths ranging from someone’s round-the-world backpacking trip to a student on a short exchange study or an annual holiday.

You can also buy travel insurance with Medical if you have already started your trip. You don’t have to be at home or within your country of residence to buy this travel insurance or to extend your existing policy. 

Finally, there is NO age limit for Medical!  It will rate the cost based on the age you enter. However, when you’re over age 70 and then 80, the limits of coverage decrease. In other words, you will pay more than a younger person for the same amount of coverage. With that being said, since there is no age limit unlike most other travel insurances companies, Medical is an ideal travel insurance for seniors. 

Why should you have travel insurance during your trips?

Good travel insurance is really important, especially if you travel like I do and do activities where the chance of getting hurt are high and the medical expenses they might cause are enormous. During my trips, I’m always hiking on mountains, climbing things, jumping here, throwing myself over there, swimming where I shouldn’t, diving ….basically doing everything that I consider part of a perfect trip!!

Imagine if you’re snowboarding in Switzerland without travel insurance, get hurt in the middle of the mountain, and have to be evacuated by helicopter. The medical bill you will receive, while still in the hospital bed, is going to be so big that you will have to stay longer at the hospital to treat the cardiac arrest you’ll get after looking at all those zeros.

I’ve lost count of how many backpackers I met during my trips who had a giant scars on their legs… it is the famous Thai Tattoo!! Basically, this happens when someone was drunk while riding a motorcycle in Thailand and ended up falling or burning himself on the exhaust pipe. Do you really want to go to a public hospital in the middle of Bangkok?!?! With travel insurance, you can go to a private hospital where they will probably l take much better care of you. 

[Source: http://outofyourcomfortzone.net/how-to-buy-travel-insurance/]

Overseas Travel Insurance

5 Ways to Save on Home Insurance

If you own a home, homeowner’s insurance is a must—and it usually isn’t cheap. For many people, paying homeowner’s insurance is lumped in with a monthly mortgage payment, so they never think about how much they’re actually paying for it. But reducing your home insurance rate can reduce your monthly payment, leaving more money in your pocket at the end of each month. And there are ways to lower your home insurance rate; they just aren’t always obvious.

Every year, there are potential opportunities for reducing your home insurance bill. But homeowners have to be proactive to take advantage of the savings.

Here are five things you can do to enjoy lower insurance costs.

1. Shop around. If you haven’t yet purchased a home, consider the cost of insurance before you buy. If you purchase a home that is within close proximity to fire hydrants and fire protection services, you could get a lower rate, as insurers look favourably on homes with those criteria, says Michael Barry, vice president of media relations at the Insurance Information Institute. When you’ve chosen a home insurance, Barry recommends shopping around for an insurer. 

“The U.S. homeowner’s insurance market is a competitive one and you’ll find wide variations when getting price quotes from different insurers,” he says. “Be sure, however, you also look to see how the coverage’s differ from company to company.” Not every insurance company will provide the same coverage — so when purchasing a policy for the first time or if you decide to switch insurers, make sure you’re comparing apples to apples.

2. Review your policy annually. After most people purchase a homeowner’s insurance policy, they simply pay the premium each year and never look at the policy again unless they need to make a claim. But that’s usually a mistake. By reviewing your policy each year, you can see if your rate has changed or if you qualify for any new discounts. When you first purchase a homeowner’s insurance policy, your insurance agent is required to let you know about discounts you qualify for. But each year when you renew, there is no such obligation. It’s up to you to be proactive. “Each year, your home insurer will almost always modify slightly your policy limits to reflect the cost of construction materials and labor in your neighborhood,” Barry says. “Both of these variables factor into pricing a policy.”

3. Increase your deductible. If you’ve been paying for a policy with a low deductible and you want to decrease your insurance rates, consider a higher deductible policy. Increasing your deductible, from $500 to $1,000, for instance, is “the fastest way to achieve premium savings,” Barry says.

4. Upgrade your home. You can also qualify for insurance discounts if you make changes to your home that improve safety or security. For instance, installing smoke detectors, burglar alarms or dead-bolt locks can usually result in insurance discounts of at least 5 percent, Barry says. Other discounts are available if you upgrade your home in a way that makes it “better equipped to withstand a natural disaster,” Barry says. For instance, that might include a new, wind-resistant roof or reinforced windows. But keep in mind that when you make cosmetic upgrades to your home—new kitchen cabinets or adding a sunroom, for instance—check with your insurance agent to make sure your updates are covered, and don’t be surprised if your rate increases to cover the updates.

5. Bundle policies. Insurance companies insure much more than homes, and they want your business on as many lines as they can get it. For that reason, many insurers will reduce your homeowner’s premium if you also purchase your car insurance or other types of insurance from them. So consider moving your life, auto or other policy to the same company, and then ask for a discount.

As you look for ways to cut expenses, consider implementing these ideas to save money on your annual home insurance bill.

[Source: https://www.societyofgrownups.com/blog/save-on-home-insurance]

Let’s go to shop your car insurance policy?

With more and more car insurance providers offering online quotes and sign-ups, switching policies is now easier than ever before. With the advent of internet people can now buy car insurance in a quick and a hassle free way from the place of their choice and at the convenience of their time. However, with multiple options available for car insurance in India, buying the right insurance policy is no less than a challenge now. Therefore, before purchasing a motor insurance, it is very important to do a significant amount of research. Nevertheless, even to carry out such a research you should know what things you need to look for. The article will guide you through some things to be considered while shopping for your car policy: 

Hidden Discounts

Often pooling your car, paying your insurance bill annually, automatic bill pay etc. can provide you with significant savings. Many companies offer substantial discounts for drivers who complete a defensive driving course, or who can show proof that they've taken a course through another provider or the workplace recently. The best ways to learn about potential discounts are to check the company's website or ask an insurance agent.

Multi-policies

Most insurance providers offer discounts to customers who buy more than one policy from them. Keeping one payment billing, a combined deductible and one person to answer all insurance questions will just seem to make your car insurance procedure simpler and sorted out.

Match Services

Before switching insurance providers, contact your current insurer for a policy review, and explain that you're considering moving elsewhere for a policy with lower premiums. Sometimes an agent offers a better rate almost immediately to retain its valued customer, especially if they know you’re about to walk. But a policy is more than just its premiums. They offer discounted rates for recurring customers or may be loyalty perks. If an agent can't match premiums, they might be able to add features to the existing policy.

When to Change

Some insurers charge a fee for breaking a policy mid-term. So, unless the savings from the new policy are significant to move on, it's best to wait until several weeks before your policy is up for review and renewal. If you decide to switch, allow enough time for the new policy to take effect, and then cancel the existing policy before its automatic renewal.

Policy awareness

To avoid having to switch again in six months or a year, customers should ask their new provider, either in person, via an online chat, or over the phone, to go through the policy structure step by step. Learn now the terms and conditions carefully else we are sure you don't want to learn after an accident that something you thought was covered isn't.

After accident services

It's easy to view car insurance as simply a line item on a budget until you need to collect. How quickly and how well the car is repaired, the deductibles after an accident are important factors to consider before buying any insurance policy.

Well, technically speak it’s impossible to truly gauge the value of any insurance product until making a claim on it. Only then will those discounted premiums will prove to have been either an excellent investment or just avoidable mistakes.

Source: https://insurancegeneralindia.wordpress.com/2015/07/30/lets-go-to-shop-your-car-insurance-policy/