Insuring your car simply shouldn’t mean you purchase the best high premium paying plan. This is because it really doesn’t make sense if you are unaware of the coverage offered by your car insurer. Since not all of us take the trouble to go through the policy documents, we often miss out on basic know-abouts that prevent us from getting the full fledged benefit of having a car insurance plan.
Here are 8 things you should know about the coverage offered by your car insurer
Contrary to the popular belief, a car insurance cover just does not cover damages or losses caused by an accident; it also provides coverage against man-made and natural calamities such as floods, vandalism, earthquake, etc.
If you are stuck in the middle of a highway, then you can easily get your car towed to the nearest garage for free of cost. However, the towing charges differ from insurer to insurer. Additionally, there is no limit on the number of times you want to get your car towed in a year.
If you opt for a comprehensive car insurance policy, you can enhance the coverage of your car’s engine by opting for an engine cover add-on. Purchasing this add-on takes care of engine related repairs that are not caused due to an accident. This ensures that the engine damage does not cause a hole in your pocket.
Just like how health insurance companies offer you cashless hospitalization facility, car insurers too allow you to get your car serviced or repaired at a cashless garage that is a part of its network. Thus, it is important that you check on the number of cashless garages falling under the network of your insurer.
Today you can easily get your car insurance policy renewed online in an easy way without having to do much of documentation. Car insurers now offer you online services that allow you to enter your basic details such as name, car make and model, registration number, etc. to get your policy renewed instantly. On renewal, you get the policy in your inbox in just a few minutes.
Car insurance companies offer a discount of up to 5%-25% to individuals who are members of the Automotive Research Association of India. You are further also eligible to receive a discount on installation of anti-devices in the vehicle.
No claim bonus is offered as a reward to policyholders for being safe drivers. This means if you do not make any claim in a year, then you are eligible to receive a certain amount of discount at the time of policy renewal. No claim bonus can range from 20%-50%. Today car insurers also offer no-claim bonus protection cover in the form of an add-on that ensures your NCB is protected, irrespective of the claims you make in a year. However, this add-on can only be purchased with a comprehensive car policy.
Life and health insurance policies allow you to enjoy tax benefits and same is the same with car insurance policy too. You can claim tax benefits on car insurance cover purchased for a commercial vehicle. This benefit can be claimed under section 88 of the Income Tax Act, 1981. To claim this benefit, it is important for you to ensure that the vehicle is in the name of the business owner or in the name of the company.