Two-Wheeler Insurance Policies To Get Cheaper, Easier To Buy

Comprehensive two wheeler insurance policies would soon get cheaper once policies with three-year validity come into effect. Large insurance companies such as ICICI Lombard and Tata AIG General Insurance, apart from government-owned companies, are planning to launch policies with riders for customers.

To enable long-term motor insurance for two-wheelers, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) has introduced a long-term motor third-party insurance policy for two-wheelers with a three-year term.

Irda said the total premium charged for the third-party coverage would be three times the annual third-party premium for two-wheelers as decided by the regulator. Motor third-party premium is regulated by Irda and the regulator brings out revised rates for these policies every year based on the claims experience. Third-party motor insurance is mandatory in India.

The insurance regulator also said that the premium would not be revised upwards or downwards during the period of the policy. According to insurance industry executives, two-wheeler owners would opt for these, since there would not be any premium fluctuations for the three-year term unlike one-year policies where the premium would be revised every year.

Sector officials said the firms would save costs by not having to renew policies every year. This, they said, would be passed on to customers in the form of discounts on the ‘own damage’ front. Customers would also get an option to stay with their one-year policy or opt for a three-year policy.

Third-party motor insurance includes two parts, own damage that protects the driver/owner from accidents and third-party cover that covers liability from third-party accidents. Third-party cover is mandatory, while own damage is optional.

General insurance companies have already planned to launch products. Madhukar Sinha, national head (personal lines) at Tata AIG General Insurance, said his company would file a product in tandem with the Irda guidelines.

He added add-ons could be offered with the policies, subject to Irda approvals.

"With respect to the pricing of the product, we are analysing the past trends for a suitable pricing mechanism."

From April 1, 2014, third-party premiums in the two-wheeler category were raised by 9-10 per cent, compared with the proposed 1-45 per cent across segments - sub-75cc, 75-150cc, 150-350cc, and more than 350cc.

Sanjay Datta, head of underwriting and claims at ICICI Lombard, had earlier said the insurer would launch a motor third-party policy for two-wheelers after filing the product with Irda. Thereafter, the company would file a comprehensive two-wheeler plan, he added.

Irda also said that the entire premium would have to be paid in one installment and insurers would not be able to cancel the standalone third-party cover in any circumstances except for ‘total loss’. In case of cancellation of policy under total loss, premiums for the full unexpired years would be refunded. Non-life companies wanting to introduce these policies will have to submit a letter of intent to Irda.

According to the regulator, since there is also a need to have long-term comprehensive cover including own damage and third-party covers, insurers can also file three-year term comprehensive policy for two-wheelers. While the ‘own-damage’ motor segment covers losses to self during accidents, motor third-party covers liability to a third-party caused by a vehicle owner during an accident.

[Source: http://www.business-standard.com/article/pf/two-wheeler-insurance-policies-may-get-cheaper-easier-to-buy-114082300506_1.html]

Things To Keep In Mind Before Buying A Health Insurance Cover

Choosing a right health insurance plan for you and your family is a serious decision as health is the only true wealth and it provides you peace of mind and sense of security not only for yourself but for your family too. It assures you that you can always offer them the best chance of getting well just in case anything goes wrong which is invaluable and priceless.

Many of us buy health insurance with the sole objective of saving tax but fail to consider the importance of buying a comprehensive medical insurance plan. More than 80% of financial crises originate out of a medical emergency and the same can severely damage one’s finances. Health emergency will not only require funds for treatment but will also hurt our ability to earn thus hitting us with a double impact. Imagine losing a family member because you cannot afford to give him the best medical treatment. So health insurance is a must today.

With increasing healthcare costs, the reason to get health protection as early as possible is gaining importance because once we get some issues like BP, diabetes the chances of getting a health cover go low and the cost goes high. There’s nothing more satisfying than to pay a small price and get peace of mind.

Following are the 10 rules you should keep in mind before you buy a health insurance plan:

Buy individual health insurance plan

You must have an individual health insurance plan even if your company offers you a corporate group health cover. There could be a possibility that your corporate cover will cease once you leave your job or retire and the company may also decide to withdraw this benefit or choose to leave other family members out of the coverage. If one is suffering from a chronic disease, this becomes more important. You can even take a Super Top up if you can’t afford a full individual Mediclaim.

Choose the right amount of sum insured

Choose the right amount as sum insured. While selecting a sum insured you need to keep the today’s costs in mind. If you are the one who is putting in a small city then your aim of cover should at least be ranging from Rs 3 to 5 lakh whereas if you live in a metropolitan city then your cover should not be less than Rs 5 to 10 lakh. Also, you can move from one insurer to another through porting. Don’t buy a new plan but instead port your plan. With porting your benefits which have been accumulating in the old plan gets transferred to the new plan. Also remember to keep on increasing your health cover from time to time to take care of the medical inflation.

Buy as early as possible

Get early protection. Buy a health cover as early in life as possible and definitely before you turn 40. As you are likely to make no or few claims in earlier stages of life, you can get the benefit of no-claims bonus and add up to the original coverage every claim-free year.

Buy the cover with lifetime renewability

Buy only a health cover which gives you lifetime renewability. Your aim is to have a health cover at older ages when you will have ailments and that protection is possible only if your policy offers lifetime renewability.

Never buy a policy which has claim loading

Never buy a health insurance policy which has a claim loading — if you get a critical illness which requires long-term cure then with claim loading your premiums will keep on increasing and soon may become unaffordable. So don’t fall into that trap.

Buy a plan which gives you super top-up

Buy a policy which gives you a restore limit or super top-up just in case you fully utilize your sum insured. This will act as a buffer to cover some unforeseen critical illnesses which may be very costly to manage like cancer etc. For example, a Rs 5-lakh plan with a Rs 5 lakh restore limit almost gives you Rs 10 lakh cover for critical illness at no extra cost.

Always buy from a reputed broker

Always buy your insurance through a reputed broker with an ability to help you with claims. Remember if you are having a heart attack or have an accident you won’t be in a position to do it yourself or fight the insurer if your claim is rejected without proper justification. Never buy direct and online. You can select a plan or study features online but only buy the health cover though an entity which has the ability to help you with the claim.

Never lie or hide information

Never lie and hide information in your application form. If you have an ailment, make sure you mention it. Get the broker to help you get a plan which will cover the ailment even after a waiting period. Today in most the plans all pre-existing diseases are also covered after 3 to 5 years depending upon the plan.

Opt for a plan that offers minimum waiting period

All health plans have a waiting period for pre-existing ailments. Please see what is waiting period in the plan that has been suggested to you. Waiting period generally extends from 2 to 5 years varying from company to company. It is always advisable to opt for a company that offers minimum waiting period. Also there are some companies which offer you coverage with lifetime exclusions. Exclude such companies from your options.

Buy a plan with no or minimal sub-limit

Buy a plan with no or minimal sub-limit. Be careful of plans which offer a cap on room rate. You can’t decide the category of the room if you or your family member is carried in an emergency situation to a hospital. Watch out for sub-limits.

Sub-limit means that your insurer specifies a limit for an expense and anything above needs to be borne by you. Room rent, diagnostics and doctor’s fee are the most commonly introduced sub-limits. You need to check the limits while choosing a policy.

Some additional tips that you must keep in mind before buying a plan:

Make a list of preferred hospitals where you would like to be cured. Does the plan offer cashless facility in those hospitals and are those hospitals covered in the insurers’ list of network hospitals. The reason I have not put this in the main rules is because as of today most of the insurers cover most of the good hospitals, so this should not be a major challenge.

The author is Managing Director, Bajaj Capital. The views expressed in this article are his own

[Source : http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/business/things-to-keep-in-mind-before-buying-a-health-insurance-cover/75751.html]

Health Insurance Awareness Growing In Rural Areas

Health insurance will soon see higher penetration with increased awareness among the rural population. The industry is currently growing at 16 per cent. People from tier-II and -III centres buy health insurance products to ensure their financial stability. As awareness spreads further, the industry will grow at a much higher rate, says V Jagannathan, Chairman and Managing Director, Star Health and Allied Insurance Company. In an interview to Business Line he said Star Health hopes to touch gross premium collection of ₹1,900 crore in the current financial year. Excerpts:

Being the first stand alone health insurance company in the country, what is your comment on how the sector has been faring in the last few years?

Health insurance in India has huge potential, but largely untapped yet. Healthcare spend in the country is estimated at ₹2,00,000 crore, whereas the penetration of health insurance remains very low mainly on account of lack of awareness among consumers.

Thanks to various State and Central government schemes, 15 per cent of the population is covered under one or other health scheme. Out of that, only 2.2 per cent of the population is covered under private health insurance.

In 2014-15, the industry as a whole had generated ₹20,443 crore of health insurance premium with 15.6 per cent growth over the previous year. However, going by the recent metrics from the industry, I can confidently say the industry has gathered momentum, and will scale new heights in the coming years.

Is health insurance still an urban phenomenon? What is your experience in the tier-II and tier-III markets?

All these days awareness about health insurance was prevalent only amongst select urban population, and people in rural areas are mostly unaware of its advantages.

Now the trend is gradually changing and people from tier-II and -III markets also participate in health insurance schemes to ensure their financial stability, so much so that we have designed a product to cater to the needs of these individuals.

In this backdrop, how would you rate your company’s performance last year?

Last year, we have performed exceedingly well with a premium income of ₹1,472 crore registering a 35 per cent growth over the previous year.

By this we could secure that distinction of becoming the No.1 amongst standalone health insurers and 5th amongst all general insurers in health insurance premium collection.

Our current market share is 7.04 per cent. Also, our claims ratio is far below the industry average.

What would you attribute your growth to?

We have an array of innovative products for every section of society at affordable cost. For example, we recently launched a policy for bariatric procedures (surgical treatment for obesity). Besides, we have over 800 branches across the country with a field force of 7,000 officials and an army of agents — the only company having such a huge infrastructure for marketing a mono-line product. Our network hospitals would soon touch 7,000. We also have the distinction of retaining 82 per cent of our customer base till now.

How many policy holders migrated in and out of your company last year?

During the year 2014-15, through portability our inflow is three times more than out flow.

When do you think you will make a positive underwriting profit and how will you get there?

We expect to make a positive underwriting profit in the current financial year, and complete a premium collection of ₹1,900 crore.

We will continue to steer clear of group insurance business, as it is not viable. Also, with a favorable incurred claims ratio, by controlling management expenses and procurement cost, we expect to show a definite profit in the current financial year.

[Source :http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/banking/health-insurance-awareness-growing-in-rural-areas-star-health-chairman/article7159206.ece]