Everything you need to know about Comprehensive Car Insurance
Now that you’ve finally purchased your dream car, you’d want to offer the highest possible protection to your prized possession. A car insurance policy can help meet this requirement.
As compared to third-party car insurance, which is mandatory by law, comprehensive car insurance is known to offer considerably better protection. It provides coverage to both the parties involved in an accident, unlike a third-party policy which only provides coverage for the other party.
But while most car owners do know that comprehensive insurance offers better protection, not many have a clear idea about what these policies provide coverage for.
Coverage Offered by Comprehensive Car Insurance
It is essential to first thoroughly understand the coverage of comprehensive policies before purchasing to avoid any rude shocks in the future. So, what are the inclusions of comprehensive insurance coverage?
As mentioned above, a comprehensive policy offers coverage to both the parties involved in an accident. For the other party involved in the accident, it will offer coverage for-
- Injuries
- Partial disability
- Permanent disability
- Accidental death
- Property damages
But apart from accidents, it also covers a host of other scenarios. While the inclusions and exclusions can vary between the insurer or policy you select, most comprehensive plans do cover the following situations-
- Theft
- Fire
- Severe weather or natural disasters
- Falling objects like trees
- Vandalism
- Riots or civil unrest
The compensation paid by the insurer will be up to the maximum coverage set by the insurer at the time of purchasing the policy.
What About Own Damages and Injuries?
If your car is damaged or you are injured in an accident, your car insurance with comprehensive coverage will come to your rescue. Moreover, if the comprehensive policy also has PA (Personal Accident) coverage, it will also cover your-
- Permanent disability
- Partial disability
- Accidental death
Some of the PA covers also offer compensation for the injuries suffered by the passengers in your car. But note that not all the comprehensive policies come with built-in PA coverage. In such cases, you might be required to purchase PA as an add-on coverage. Just like car insurance, do check the inclusions and exclusions of your PA coverage at the time of purchasing the policy.
What Does a Comprehensive Car Insurance Note Cover?
While a comprehensive policy offers the highest possible protection to your car, it does not cover anything and everything. Just like the inclusions, the exclusions can also vary between insurers and policies. But rest assured that your comprehensive policy will mostly not offer coverage for-
- Damages caused to the car when the driver was under the influence of alcohol or other intoxicating drugs
- Damages caused to the car when the driver was driving without a valid driving license
- Damage caused to the vehicle after the policy has expired
- Damage caused to the car in a nuclear war
- Damaged caused to the car outside the geographical limits of the policy
- Mechanical or electrical breakdowns
- Depreciation
- Tyres and tubes
- Standard wear and tear due to ageing
How to Further Increase the Coverage of a Comprehensive Policy?
If you are looking for ways to increase the coverage of your comprehensive motor insurance, one of the best options is to purchase add-ons. For instance, depreciation is not covered in comprehensive policies. However, you do have the option to buy a zero depreciation add-on with your comprehensive policy.
Insurers consider depreciation at the time of calculating the compensation they are required to pay in case if your car is damaged or stolen. With the zero depreciation add-on, the insurer will no longer consider depreciation, and the compensation will be as per the original cost of your car.
So, in a way, the add-ons help you get coverage even for the things that are generally not covered by comprehensive policies. There are some other great add-ons that you can consider such as-
- Key protection
- Engine protection
- Return to invoice
- NCB protection
- 24x7 roadside assistance
While the add-ons slightly increase your insurance premium, they considerably increase the coverage offered by your policy.
How to File a Comprehensive Car Insurance Claim?
Now that you know what is included and excluded in a comprehensive car insurance policy, you should also know about how to file a claim in case if you are involved in an accident.
The claim filing process can vary between insurers. Thus, it is always better to only trust reputed insurers as they have high claim settlement ratios and a simple claim filing process. In case of an accident, you will most likely be required to-
- Inform your insurer
- File a police complaint
- Submit required documents to the insurer (copy of the driving license, RC book, insurance policy, police FIR, etc.) along with a duly filled claim form
- A surveyor will be assigned to evaluate your losses
- If everything is in order, your claim request will be approved
Why Should You Consider Comprehensive Car Insurance?
Even though comprehensive policies are more expensive than third-party policies, they are a wise investment if you are concerned about the safety of your car and your finances.
It is only with the help of a comprehensive policy that you get enhanced protection against third-party and own damages. You also get added protection against theft, fire, natural calamities, and more so that such unfortunate events do not leave you in a financial mess.
Compare comprehensive insurance policy online to select one that meets your requirements and offers maximum value for your money.
