Thursday 30 July 2015

Online Travel Insurance is the way to go

We all look for a respite when tedious life makes us weary. A well-planned vacation to a dream destination is the best way to rejuvenate. What are the things that strike your mind first when you plan a holiday? Aside from booking hotels, getting flight or train tickets and packing your bags, an online travel insurance policy is what you should include in your planning. Many people consider it as a waste of money but a suitable travel cover offers peace of mind to the travelers by protecting them financially in time of any untoward incident.

Travel Insurance
Travel Insurance
A travel insurance in India is now lot easier to obtain thanks to the Internet. An online approach to buy travel insurance also saves lot of time and effort which is highly advantageous because when you are rushing with last minute packing you hardly have any time to visit different agents and discuss about travel policies. Here are some steps that you need to take to grab a travel cover that meets your needs to perfection.

Extensive and unbiased research

There is no escape. You need to delve deep into internet and spend some time in researching. Prior to research, you need to select a particular type of travel plan. Once you know which plan you want you have to search for insurance providers that offer such plans. While researching you will come across many popular insurers, however, instead of being influenced by big names you should rather focus on the plans along with their coverages and premium amounts. If you have a specific budget you can resort to various insurance comparison portals. Upon submitting your budgets, these portals will endow you with a plethora of travel covers to choose from.

Selection of the right plan

You should not rush to make the final selection. Once you get hold of a good travel plan you need to go through the policy wordings. You need to ensure that your chosen policy will protect you regardless of country and type of illness. You should also confess if you have any pre-existing illness beforehand so that your insurer don't reject your claim in time of an emergency. Keep an eye on the list of exclusions of the policy as well when you are finalizing a travel plan.

Comparison of quotes

Now that you know which plan would serve your purpose best you would definitely look to secure that cover by paying the least. Insurance comparison portals will help you compare quotes offered by various insurers in India. When you enter your personal details you will be provided with an array of quotes with key benefits and exclusions. The customer care team of an online insurance comparison portal will also guide you to make an informed decision. By comparing different quotes you can trace out the most affordable travel plan that matches your requirements.

Purchasing process

You did all the hard work of researching, selecting and comparing of travel insurance in India. Now, it is time for the final step of buying the plan you have been looking for. Most reputable online insurance comparison portals are armed with safe payment modes. You need to click on the buy button and make the payment through your preferred mode. Within a few minutes, you will be provided with a soft copy of your travel plan.

Go online and buy travel insurance from the comfort of your home. Enjoy every bit of your vacation with a comprehensive travel cover.

Friday 10 July 2015

Not satisfied with your health insurer? Renew your plan with a different health insurance provider

People of India are more or less familiar with the concept of the portability of mobile number. Similarly, health insurance portability has also come into existence in India. The IRDA has made it possible for policyholder to shift their health policy on renewal from one insurance provider to another, without having to lose any benefits.
health portability

This ground-breaking step has been greeted positively by most policy holder in India as they can continue with the least base cover which remains static across all insurance providers. In the past, when a policy holder fell sick during the term of an earlier policy term, the new insurer considered it as pre-existing condition. This is the reason why many insured people, especially senior citizens found it utterly difficult to switch to a new insurer even if they were dissatisfied with the incompetency of their exiting insurers.

However, things have changed now; and have changed for the better. Now, you can rightfully change your insurer at the time of renewing your existing health cover. Even after being shifted to a new insurance provider you can still enjoy all the benefits that you have accumulated during your policy term with your previous insurer. With the advent of health insurance portability in India you don't have to lose benefits such as waiting period to cover pre-existing conditions.

The same rule applies when you switch from one health plan to another with the same insurer as well. 
one health plan to another
Privileges of insured people

IRDA have come up with a set of privileges to facilitate policy holders so that they can make the most of the concept of portability of insurance plan. The followings are the advantages that insured people would definitely appreciate;
  • All insured persons can shift their policy to and from any specialized health insurance firm or any general insurance provider
  • Both individual and family health policies are portable under the new scheme
  • New insurers must provide insured people with the credit that they have accumulated with their previous insurers pertaining to the duration of waiting period for pre-existing diseases
  • Insured people are entitled to receive up to the sum insured under previous policy as a minimum by the new insurer
  • Both new and old insurers have to complete the shifting of policy within the deadline proposed by the IRDA
Conditions that insured people need to fulfill
  • Insured people can switch their health covers only at the time of renewal. This means they will start a fresh insurance period with a new insurer. 
  • All terms of the new health policy such as the the premium amount will be deiced by the new insurance provider  except for the credit for waiting period
  • Policy holders must do the followings 45 days prior to the date of renewal
  1. Write a letter to their previous insurance provider making a request for a shift
  2. They also have to specify the name of the company to which they want to switch their existing health plans
  3. Most importantly, policy holders need to renew their plans without any break. A 30 day grace period is available if shifting is under process. 

IRDA has lately come up with an online facility to avail and maintain data regarding all health insurance plans provided by insurance firms to individual policy holders. This enables new insurer to which insured people are keen to shift to access tall the required information so that it can be accessed by the new company to which a policyholder wishes to port his policy. Furthermore, new insurers can also gain information on history of health plans of the policyholder.

Some disadvantages of porting health plan to new insurer

compare health insurance plan
In the past, majority of health covers come with one year contract. Policy holders that don't make any claim are usually entitled for various forms of bonuses such as premium reduction or higher sum assured for same premium. Under the present scenario, when an insured person changes his or her insurer he or she would miss out on bonuses and have to continue paying the base rate. The portability will also going to impose problems for senior citizens as most insurance providers are not keen to sell new health plans to elderly people. In essence, the portability diminishes the benefits of customized health plans.

However, these downsides matter little compared to the set of privileges that insured people can enjoy now. Health insurance portability further ensures that online comparison portals will play more significant role to decide on the perfect deal.

This has proved to be gift for a millions of policyholders in India. This move ensures that the insurance firms in India can no longer take their clients for granted. Insured people in India are not forced to stick to any particular insurance company on permanent basis. They can shift their health policies at the time of renewal when their existing insurers would stop covering the risks. Most importantly, these insurance providers will come up with more customer-friendly insurance product in order to to retain their policy holders for years and they cannot turn down any claim frivolously as well.  

Monday 6 July 2015

Transfer of insurance is a must while buying an used car

The market of used car in India is thriving of late. There is an array of reasons that have triggered such rapid growth. Most importantly, used car market helped middle-class and lower-middle class people achieve their dream of buying a car. Furthermore, this market also helped people purchase expensive luxury cars at an affordable price.

A recent survey revealed that an increasing number of people are on the lookout for used vehicles these days. The demand for used motor is a whopping 1.5 million every year in India. Automobile manufacturers also have realized that the market of used vehicle is booming and have enough potential to generate high revenues.

If you are seeking an used motor in good condition, there is a good chance that you get a good deal if you can shop around. However, you should also be aware of the downsides of buying pre-owned vehicles. These automobiles, more often than not, don't come with OEM parts or necessary documents regarding taxes and insurance and warranties.

Certified used car showroom

In a bid to curb this issue, automobile makers have not only called for certified used car outlets all over the country but they have also made it essential for dealers to come up with used motor showrooms. These showrooms have proved to be highly beneficial for both vehicle sellers and buyers. These outlets provide sellers with many value-added services.

  • They get the best price available in the market.
  • Experts examine their motors intensively
  • They are also entitled to choose any other vehicle from the car-maker range.

Buyers on the other hand, are also provided with a lot of services as well. They receive insurance, warranty on the used vehicles that are minutely checked by experienced and trained technicians.

If you are planning to buy an used car, the present scenario will surely make you feel delighted. With the advent of certified used car outlets you can always fancy buying a previously owned vehicle in good condition and at a much-reduced price. Wait, are you aware of the laws regarding the transfer of policy while buying an used motor?

A valid policy is mandatory for any vehicle in India because, should any accident occurs insurance companies pay the repair charges only if there is an authentic policy on the vehicle. If the concerned vehicle is not insured at the time of a claim the insurance organizations can rightfully deny claims regarding repair costs. And the same goes for used automobiles as well. Transfer of car insurance needs to be done within 14 days after the transfer of ownership. New owners will not receive any claim if the policy remains in the name of the previous owner. New owners need to be mindful of the fact that policy does not automatically transfer at the time of ownership change. And, it is the responsibility of the new owners to check and ensure that the policy is transferred in their names. The policy transfer can take place parallel with ownership change because new owners can provide same set of documents to the Insurer.

An incident in the capital of India has proved the significance of car insurance transfer of used vehicle. The new owner, residing in South Delhi bought an used car but didn't have the policy transferred in his name. When the vehicle met an accident the insurance company denied his claim since the policy was in the name of the ex-owner at the time of mishap. After a long legal battle, the State Commission found the new owner guilty of not transferring policy in his name within 14 days of ownership change and finally the new, suffered owner didn't get any claim whatsoever. By now, you must have realized that any negligence regarding car insurance transfer can proved to be very costly.

You need to gain some information on how used motors are sold and bought in India so that you can avoid any legal issue in time of any mishap. In simple words, an owner sells out his or her used vehicle to the dealer and receives either a new or an used motor in return. However, dealers usually are reluctant to be the owner and they generally waits until the vehicle is sold again so that the policy can be shifted to the current owner. Hence, all buyers and sellers need to streamline the car Insurance formalities. This will help both of them avoid any complication due to the negligence of dealers.

Most motor owners in India tend to overlook the importance of having an authentic insurance. And this kind of negligence and over-dependence on agents can proved to be fatal because agents do take advantage of unsuspecting customers. An increasing number of people are nowadays on the lookout for used vehicles. Hence, they should be aware of the correct information pertaining to car insurance so that they can take necessary action at the time of buying an used vehicle and avoid unwanted legal hazards and financial loss.