Indian Consumer, Pandemic And Health Insurance: The Policybazaar Show

Health insurance is far more critical in these times as people are worried about their health because of Covid-19. The demand for health insurance in the industry has grown. At the same time, people are also facing difficulties in paying for policies. Hence, measures like monthly payment options are gaining traction wherein the policyholder can pay the premium in monthly installments rather than paying upfront for a policy. 

People are looking for comprehensive insurance plans which cover all kinds of illnesses. They are also looking for a higher sum insured plans as they have become very affordable now. One should have a health insurance cover which is as large as possible. A Rs 1 crore health plan is a one-stop solution for consumers as medical inflation is happening. 

People should look towards investing in floater covers for families. A Rs 1 crore health insurance plan costs less than Rs 1,000 per month for a 30-years-old person. As age crosses 50, people should break away from floater covers and opt for individual covers. When children reach 25 years of age, they should look for individual covers for themselves.
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It is ideal that grandparents have separate covers and not be clubbed with family as they would have pre-existing diseases so premiums of the entire family will be impacted. 

DON'T RELY ON EMPLOYER FOR INSURANCE

Rs 2 lacs cover is the standard cover provided to employees which isn’t adequate for yourself and your family. Also, in case you have to leave the organization, the insurance will be discontinued. So, salaried individuals must buy insurance covers in parallel. 

COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH INSURANCE IS BETTER THAN COVID-19 SPECIFIC POLICY

One should opt for comprehensive health insurance rather than Covid-19 specific plans because comprehensive health insurance cover all diseases along with Covid-19. While Covid-19 specific policies provide coverage only for Covid-19 and their duration is for six months only. While comprehensive health insurance plans are lifelong. 

DIGITAL HAS BECOME THE GO-TO MODE

Data from the insurance companies have proven that doing telemedical or video-based medicals is giving them better results than physical medicals. A doctor can speak to the consumer over the phone and probe their medical history. As time progresses and with the Prime Minister’s announcement of the health card, everything will move towards digital.

As of today, in 95% of cases of Policybazaar, there isn’t any physical medical required. 15-20% of health insurance is being sold digitally in the industry. 

TRANSPARENT CHANNELS GIVE BETTER RESULTS 

Transparent channel wherein the consumer knows the product enough before buying and the insurance company knows enough about the consumer before issuing the product, gives better results. So, there are lower lapse rates and better claims understanding than any opaque channel where disclosure levels are lower.     

CASE STUDY: Abhishek Grover (General Manager)

Abhishek Grover works as a General Manager (Sales) for a shipping and logistics company. He is a customer of Policybazaar. A few years ago, his friend was diagnosed with cancer who ended up paying from his savings for the treatment. He paid a whopping Rs 15 lacs for the treatment. Grover and his friend had a discussion about health insurance through which he would be saved from the financial and mental trauma. They bought Max Bupa Rs 1 crore super saver plan immediately and his friend had a huge benefit. Through this incident, Grover realized that having health insurance is very important during any medical emergency which can cause a toll on your savings and mental health. 

After a few years, Grover himself met with an accident due to which he got some facial injuries and his leg was fractured. So, it cost him Rs 70,000.   

Grover doesn’t rely on his employer for health insurance and has a standalone health insurance policy. This is because his company provides only Rs 2 lacs cover health insurance which wasn’t adequate enough for his entire family. 

He compared plans on Policybazaar and bought a Max Bupa Rs 1 crore sum insured health insurance for his family which included himself, his wife, and kids. It cost him Rs 2,075 per month. While he bought Religare Care health insurance for his parents who are above 60 years of age.  

During Covid-19, he was worried whether the disease will be covered under his health insurance policy. However, he got satisfied when the Policybazaar team mailed its customers in March that Covid-19 treatment is covered under comprehensive plans. Policybazaar also provided assistance for his claims. He got in touch with Policybazaar claim assistant executives to guide him in the process while selecting the hospitals which offer cashless services. They provided assistance for pre-authorization and final settlement for my claim within a few minutes. 

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