Car Insurance

You will be reimbursed for transportation expenses up to your residence in the same city. In any other place in India, if your vehicle becomes immobile, you will get overnight hotel expenses and reimbursement for vehicle being towed to the nearest garage.

Reliance will take maximum 48 hours inspect the damaged car.

No, L&T comprehensive plan doesn’t offer coverage to cars above 7 years of age.

Yes, insurance companies are offering free accommodation and taxi travel, limiting the number of kilometers, from the breakdown location. For instance, insurance company can have a policy of providing free taxi and accommodation up to 50kms from the breakdown location. Check policy wordings to know more about this benefit.

You need to declare it in your insurance paper at the time of buying a policy because CNG or LPG kit will be insured separately. However, if it is fitted in your car after the policy issuance then you need to inform the insurance company and submit copy of your updated RC certificate.

Discounts offered by insurance company on your premium would depend on your claim history as well as other factors. Some of the popular discounts offered by insurance companies are-

• No claim bonus= If you have not made any claim on your insurance during the policy term then insurance company will offer you discount, called no claim bonus at the time of renewal. Insurance companies reward policyholders for not making claims by providing discount on the own damage part of the premium up to maximum of 50%.

• Memberships= Concessions are available if a policyholder becomes a member of recognized automobile associations, like Automobile Association of Upper India, Automobile Association of Eastern India, Western India Automobile Association and Automobile Association of Southern India.

• Installation of safety devices- With vehicles being vulnerable to theft, installing anti-theft and safety devices in your vehicle is strongly advised. Insurance companies also encourage people to install anti-theft devices in their vehicle. Taking one step ahead, insurers are offering discounts to people who have installed anti theft and safety devices approved by the Automotive Research Association of India.

• Voluntary deductible= You get discounts if you opt for voluntary excess. It means you give your consent to bear a certain portion of loss at the time of claim. For instance, you had an accident and total claim amount is Rs 20,000. You choose to pay Rs 10,000 of your claim and this amount is called voluntary deductible.

• Loyalty discount= If you are renewing your policy with the same insurer then you may get loyalty discount.

• Occupational discount= It is strongly recommended to give details of your profession at the time of filling the insurance form because there are various companies which are offering professional discounts. You may be entitled to get 5-8% discount on premium if you belong to any of the following profession-

1. A fully qualified chartered accountant
2. Serving in defense and paramilitary services
3. Teaching in government recognized school, universities and educational institutes
4. Employees of central/state government departments
5. Qualified doctors who are registered with the government recognized medical council

• Marital status= Nowadays, insurance companies are giving discounts to a policyholder if he/she is married. Insurers consider married policyholders more responsible drivers and are perceived to take good care of the vehicle.

Fuel type= Diesel cars may have become popular due to low fuel cost but buying insurance for them prove to be a costly affair. Vehicles using petrol attract low premiums as compared to diesel or CNG cars.

IDV of insured declared value is the maximum amount to be paid by an insurer at the time of a claim if the vehicle gets stolen or lost. It is the sum insured which is fixed at the commencement of the policy issuance.

For premium calculation, insurance company considers following factors-

• Insured Declared Value= It is the maximum amount which an insurance company will pay at the time of claim. It is sum assured and is decided on the inception of the policy. IDV is arrived on the basis of manufacturer’s listed selling price of the brand, model and then adjusted as per the standard depreciation rates. The depreciation rate keeps on increasing with the age of the car. A new car will fetch maximum IDV but as the vehicle turns old, depreciation rate keeps on rising. If accessories like music system or speakers are additionally fitted in your car then price of these items are also added to the IDV. If you are getting insurance for a vehicle that is more than 5 years old, then IDV is calculated on the basis of an undertaking between insurer and insured after adjusting depreciation rate. It is important to note, IDV is calculated only for a comprehensive insurance policy and not for a third party insurance cover.

• CC (Cubic Capacity)= Every vehicle has an engine size, which is measured as per the cubic capacity. The size of the engine plays a role in deciding premium amount that you have to pay for a third party insurance cover. Premium would be same both in new and old vehicles because it is calculated on the size of an engine and not on the basis of its age. Engine capacity is not the criteria used for calculating premium rates for a comprehensive cover. You can find out cc of your vehicle’s engine from its registration paper.

• Geographical zone= According to India Motor Tariff, India is divided into two parts-

Zone A=It includes cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Chennai

Zone B= It covers rest of the country

Premium rates are high in cities falling under Zone A as compared to Zone B.

Besides above factors, premium rates are also subject to certain deductions based on the age, occupation of the insured, RTO location, fuel type, make & model of the vehicle and no claim bonus earned. In case you want extended coverage for personal accident, electrical/non electrical accessories, etc; you may have to pay an additional premium.

When you buy online, there is no documentation required to do. However, we advise you to keep the previous insurance policy and RC handy at the time of buying insurance.

There are mainly two types of auto insurance policies available in market-

• Liability Only Cover= It insured your vehicle against legal liability for death, disability or damage caused to the third party property. It doesn’t offer any coverage to damages caused to your vehicle. Also known as ‘act only’ cover, it is a statutory requirement under the Motor Vehicle Act to buy this insurance policy.
• Comprehensive Policy= It covers third party insurance and also indemnifies policyholder against loss/damage caused to the own vehicle.

 In addition, customer can opt for various add ons such as Zero Depreciation, NCB Protection, Road Side Assistance, Engine Protection, Invoice Cover, Consumables etc.

You can buy insurance for your second hand car by submitting sell letter (Form 29 & Form 30) and previous owner’s policy details.

A customer must send the scanned copy of RC of the car along with his policy papers. If you are unable to send scanned papers then you can click photographs of these papers and mail it to the insurance company. A payment has to be made either via electronic mode like credit/debit card or cheque. Thereafter insurance company conducts inspection of vehicle in next 24-48 hours. If the inspection is successful, then soft copy of the renewed policy would be issued in next 2 or 3 working days. Incase inspection is not successful, the amount which a customer had paid earlier, will be refunded within 7-15 working days.

We are sorry but you cannot get ‘return to invoice policy’ because it is available only up to 2 years of car age.

If you are buying a new car and want to transfer your existing policy then you would need to contact your insurance company and submit necessary documents like sale letter of old car, third party insurance paper for old car, NCB document (if applicable) etc. There may be variation in premium rates and change in underwriting criteria for new vehicle.

When you sell your car, you have two options regarding car insurance:

• Buyer can get the insurance policy transferred in his name by informing the insurance company who will make an endorsement in this regard. However, NCB on the policy is non-transferrable. It will be retain by the seller which he/she can use at the time of buying another insurance policy. It is important to inform the insurance company within 14 days from the date of ownership transfer failing which no claim will be paid for own damage to the vehicle.

• You can cancel your insurance policy and buyer will buy a fresh policy. You will get the refund for the remaining period, provided there is no claim. In this case too, you can retain NCB and transfer it to your new insurance policy if you have bought another vehicle. Please note insurance company will cancel your policy only if you will submit necessary documents regarding ownership transfer. Also, you can transfer your existing policy to your new vehicle and unpaid premium will be adjusted accordingly by insurer.

Yes, it is required to make payment before inspection. After receiving all payment details, Tata AIG would contact the customer to fix the schedule of car inspection.

Yes Tata AIG is providing six months accidental repair warranty in both Secure and Pearl plans.

If it is covered in your current policy then no inspection is required at the time of renewal.

These are Tata AIG tie up garages where you can avail accidental repair warranty with cashless benefits. Tata AIG has given ‘green channel settlements’ name to its cashless garages.

Yes, there is a NCB protection benefit available in Tata AIG. If you get plastic, rubber or fiber part repaired at Tata authorized center, it will not affect your NCB. Tata AIG provides protection for NCB up to 1 claim for repair of rubber, plastic, glass part or fiber.