Health Insurance

Cost of quality healthcare in India has been sky-rocketing for the past decade or so. Hospitalization for a serious health condition can set you back by Rs 5 to 10 lakhs, depending on the severity of the condition and treatment options. Health insurance provides insurance cover for comprehensive hospitalization expenses related to accident and illness. It typically covers the following expenses:-

• Room, boarding expenses of the hospital bed
• Fees charged by physician, surgeon, anesthetist and other specialists
• Cost of medical procedures e.g. surgery, dialysis etc.
• Cost of medicines, medical equipments, consumables etc.
• Tests and procedures like X Ray, ECG, MRI, anesthesia etc

Some health insurance policies may also cover pre hospitalization medical expenses e.g. tests, diagnosis etc, up to the limit of your health insurance cover (sum insured). If your health insurance sum insured is Rs 5 lakhs and your hospital bill is Rs 6 lakhs, the health insurance company will pay Rs 5 lakhs and you will have to pay Rs 1 lakh.

Health insurance claims can be cashless or on a reimbursed basis. In a cashless claim, you do not have pay from your pocket. Your medical bills are settled directly by the insurance company to the hospital. In reimbursement, you have to settle the hospital bills and claim reimbursement from the insurer after submitting the bills. Obviously, cashless claims are much more convenient but for cashless claims you have to go to a hospital which is in the hospital network of the insurance company.

Your health insurance premium will depend on the sum insured (amount of health insurance cover), your age / age of your family members (in case of a family floater plan), pre-existing medical conditions, the policy features you opt for e.g. what illnesses / procedures are covered, exclusions, type of room you are entitled to (single, sharing basis, deluxe etc), co-pay (what percentage of the expenses e.g. 20% you will have to pay in the event of an hospitalization) etc. There many points to consider when buying health insurance or Mediclaim. Your insurance advisor will be able to recommend the right health insurance product for you, based on your needs.

General Insurance

How does life insurance plan work?

Motor insurance is a mandatory requirement if have a car, motorcycle or scooter. You will have to pay a fine and have your vehicle registration certificate (RC) or driving license (DL) confiscated by the police, if you are driving without a valid motor insurance or a motor insurance policy that has expired.

There are two types of motor insurance - third party insurance and comprehensive insurance. Third party insurance is mandatory for all vehicle owners in India. Third-party insurance will cover your liability towards damages incurred by the third party in case an accident happens with your vehicle. It won't cover damages to your vehicle. Comprehensive motor insurance provides your vehicle complete end-to-end protection against damage caused by accidents or natural disasters like floods etc.

Motor insurance premium depends on the price of the car (in case of a brand new car) or the Insurance Declared Value (IDV) of a car that has completed more than 1 year. Motor insurance is usually valid for a year; you must renew or get a new motor insurance policy before expiry of your current motor insurance. Some motor insurance policies can cover you for multiple years.

Travel insurance: Travel insurance provides financial protection against possible losses that you may suffer when you are travelling by air, especially in overseas travel. It covers you against financial losses due to loss of baggage, trip cancellation, and flight delays. Some travel insurances also cover medical expenses that you may have to incur while travelling.

Home insurance: As the name suggests, home insurance provides financial protection against damages caused to your home and its contents (furniture, home appliances etc) due to man-made (e.g. fire) or natural disasters (e.g. flood, earthquake etc).