In India, any vehicle, be it a two wheeler or a three wheeler or a four wheeler or any number of wheels that it might have, cannot ply on roads without an active insurance policy. And if the vehicle is being used without an insurance policy, then it amounts to a hefty fine for breaking the law. Now it is important to understand that the four wheeler insurance works different to the two wheeler insurance. Though most of the points are pretty much the same, but there are some differences. Though we won’t be going into those today, we are going to be explaining how two wheeler insurances work.Getting a Policy:
Since the compulsory insurance law was passed, whenever you buy a two wheeler, you get an insurance policy along with the vehicle. The cost of it is included in the on-road price itself. The policy lasts a year after which you can either choose to continue with the same policy, else change the policy to the company of your choice. Nowadays 90% of the companies provide insurance policies online via their websites. So the customer simply has to press a few buttons on the keyboard to fill in the details and the insurance policy can be bought.
How Is the Premium Calculated?
The premium is the amount you are required to pay against the purchase of the insurance policy, the premium of your bike’s insurance depends upon various factors. First of all there is the cost of the bike. So a low costing bike will have a small premium while a premium bike will call for a larger amount of premium. And then there are other factors as well like rider insurance, pillion insurance and also 3rd party insurance. So with each addition, the premium amount keeps on rising. You can choose to lower the premium amount by lowering the IDV (Insurer Declared Value). This is the specified amount that the insurance company pays the customer in case the vehicle is stolen and not found. This value keeps on decreasing with time, hence the IDV value reduced every time you renew the policy after taking into account the depreciation.
What all is covered?When the insurance policy is bought the surveyor makes sure that the bike is in proper shape. So with the new bike, the insurance covers pretty much everything ranging from accidents, to break downs to rider and pillion injury and also 3rd party claims if the option is selected while buying the policy. It covered each and every metal part and plastic parts inclusive of the wheel rims and engine. The tyres sadly are sometimes not covered since they come with their own individual warranty from the tyre manufacturer and it not the part of the bike during the manufacturing process. So it is better to find someone who is willing to include the bikes too. Other consumables like nut & bolts and grease is not included. Plus if your bike has previous scratches and cracks while renewing or buying a new policy, even those won’t be covered in the insurance policy.
What does 1st party and 3rd party cover mean?
When you buy any insurance, there you will always find a mention of “3rd party coverage”. Now this 3rd party coverage is actually nothing but the insurance cover in case a mishap happens due to the fault of the insurance holder. Then the damage caused to the other person involved in the accident is referred to as the third party. This means that the insurance company when liable to pay only for the insurance holder is called a 1st party insurance cover. But if the insurance covers even the damage done to the referred 3rd party, then that is a 3rd party insurance. So in simple words, you hit a guy and he gets injured, then the insurance company will pay that injured person from your insurance. In this case the insurance holder is not liable to get any compensation for his/her damage occurred in the incident.
How does the Claim Procedure work?The claim procedure generally works in a simple way, “Pay now, reimbursement later”. This means whenever there is an accident or an incident, you have to call the claims department of your insurance company and let them know about the incident. After that the claims investigator comes to the company workshop to inspect the bike and after a thorough assessment gives his/her go ahead. After that the work is done and the customer has to pay for the repairs while the insurance company later reimburses the customer for the damages. The amount reimbursed is never in whole and it covers about 80-90% of the total cost.
Many of the premium bikes which cost a fortune to own for some even have cashless feature available where the same procedure is followed, just the customer only has to pay for the processing fees and consumables while the insurance company directly pays the company workshop for the work done.
Which Insurance Policy to Choose:
The market is filled with a lot of companies and there is immense competition which is good news for the consumer himself. But still just because the company is giving you a low premium for your bike does not mean it is the best policy. Always choose a policy which covers everything in them. And by that we mean everything. Always make sure to follow the given checklist below to select your insurance policy:
1. Complete Bike and Accessories cover.
2. 3rd party damage cover.
3. 24x7 Roadside assistance.
4. Cashless facility in the nearest Authorized workshop.
5. Accident cover for both rider and pillion.
6. High IDV amount.
Follow the given list and then choose the best insurance policy for your bike. It might seem like a joke, but if someday, God Forbid! If you happen to be in a mishap, then it is always better to keep something for safety, and this is it.2. 3rd party damage cover.
3. 24x7 Roadside assistance.
4. Cashless facility in the nearest Authorized workshop.
5. Accident cover for both rider and pillion.
6. High IDV amount.
So get a proper insurance policy for you and your bike and ride without any worries. After all it is against the law as well.
By: Pratik Patole
