Driver and Passenger Covers in Car Insurance

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has made it mandatory for every owner-driver of the insured car to have a personal accident cover with car insurance. Apart from this, you can also get an additional passenger cover for passengers riding in the car for an additional premium amount.Read more

Understanding Personal Accident (PA) Cover in Car Insurance

Personal Accident (PA) cover in a car insurance provides financial compensation if an insured individual suffers an accidental injury, death or permanent total/partial disability. These covers are attached to the person and not the vehicle. In India, PA covers in car insurance are of the following three types:

1. Owner-Driver PA Cover: It is a mandatory cover by IRDAI that provides coverage for the registered owner of the insured car.
2. Paid Driver PA cover: It offers financial protection to the hired driver in case of injury/death or disability involving the insured car.
3. Unnamed Passenger Cover: The passenger cover protects the co-passengers travelling inside the insured car.

What is Passenger Cover in Car Insurance?

A passenger cover in car insurance is an add-on that covers the medical expenses and liabilities of occupants in your car in case of an accident. It protects passengers by covering hospitalisation costs, medical treatments, and other related expenses.

Besides, the passenger cover also compensates for the permanent disability or death of passengers due to an accident involving the insured car. While the car owner and the driver are covered under the mandatory PA cover with standard insurance policies, passengers are excluded unless you have this optional cover. You can opt for the passenger cover when buying or renewing own damage or comprehensive car insurance.

How Do Driver and Passenger Covers Work in Car Insurance?

The personal accident cover in your comprehensive car insurance protects the owner-driver in the event of an accident involving the insured car resulting in an injury or death. In case of the death or permanent disability of the owner-driver, the insurer will pay a fixed amount as compensation to the nominee or the policyholder respectively.

To cover a paid driver, the car owner will have to opt for the paid driver add-on by paying a nominal extra premium. The claim amount is payable only to the mentioned paid driver in the proposal application. No other person can avail of those financial benefits, even if they are paid to drive the insured car.

However, no coverage will be provided to passengers seated in the car because a regular car insurance policy does not cover passengers in such accidents. The passengers will have to spend from their own pockets for their treatment.

As the owner of the car, you have the responsibility of the passengers sitting in your vehicle. With the help of the passenger add-on cover, all the passengers riding inside the care are covered financially. This add-on cover assuredly adds value to your regular car insurance policy by covering the liabilities arising due to injuries or death of the passengers in your car and assisting in treating their injuries.

Are Driver and Passenger Covers in Car Insurance Mandatory?

While the Personal Accident (PA) cover (with coverage up to Rs. 15 lakh) in car insurance is mandatory for all car owners in India, the passenger cover is not compulsory. However, there are choices available to cover the risks of personal accidents to any paid driver or passenger in the car. By buying the driver and passenger cover, the car's owner-driver, passengers, and even the family members can be covered against accidental injuries, including death or disability.

While driver car insurance only covers the owner-driver of the car, the passenger add-on cover can protect up to 03 extra passengers apart from the driver. Thus, passenger car insurance cover offers wider coverage.

Range of Compensation under Passenger Cover

WIth the passenger cover in your car insurance policy, your insurer will pay compensation for physical injuries that happened while travelling, ascending, or descending the insured vehicle. Here is the scale of refund, which an insurer is liable to pay you in case of such incidents-

Benefits of Driver and Passenger Covers

Buying the driver and passenger covers under your standard comprehensive car insurance policy widens its overall coverage level. Here are the benefits of driver and passenger covers:

• It covers medical costs incurred in the treatment of the injured driver and passengers.
• It gives financial aid in case of the death of owner-driver/passengers.
• It provides disability liability cover to the owner-driver and passengers of an insured car.
• It aims to reduce the financial burden resulting from such situations as you can claim for the monetary implications of any injuries to the owner-driver and passengers travelling in the car.

What is Excluded under Driver and Passenger Covers?

Like various add-ons, the driver and passenger covers in car insurance come with some exclusions as well. They are as follows-

• Some insurers do not provide financial assistance if the passenger(s) had walked away from the place of the incident.
• It does not cover more than three passengers in a private car.
• Accidental injuries due to attempted suicide or intentional self-injury are not covered.
• An accident taking place when the driver was under the influence of alcohol or any drug is excluded.

How Can You Raise a Claim under Driver and Passenger Covers?

The process to register a claim for driver and passenger covers in car insurance is easy and hassle-free. Follow these simple steps:

Step 1: Give a call to your insurer and inform them about the accident. Explain to them the amount of damage to your car and injured passengers in the accident.

Step 2: File an FIR at the local police station near you.

Step 3: If the accident involves a third party, take the entire details of the third party.

Step 4: You and the passengers of your car should visit a hospital to receive treatment for your injuries.

Step 5: The insurance company will assign a surveyor to evaluate the damages to your car for the settlement of the claim.

Step 6: The insurer will provide financial assistance for treating the injuries of the passengers and the owner-driver of the insured vehicle. In case of any death due to the accident, the insurer will pay compensation to the victim & family.

Summing it Up

Life is unpredictable and so, you can never predict when you can meet with a car accident. Hence, you should have a driver and passenger cover with your car insurance to deal with its financial implications. As a car owner, it is mandatory for you to have a personal accident cover under your car insurance policy. But to ensure coverage for the passenger seated in your car, you need to buy a passenger add-on cover. Just remember that the compensation under the passenger cover is applicable to passengers seated within the legally allowed seating capacity of the insured car.