Cars that once projected luxury and lavishness, are now bought for comfort and convenience. Thus, more and more people in India are opting to buy a car in today’s day and age. But any damage to this luxury-cum-utilitarian vehicle of yours can put a hole in your wallet. Hence, it is essential to safeguard them using a car insurance plan.
A car insurance policy is available in two types—a third-party plan or a comprehensive plan. Whichever type of plan you select, a personal accident cover is mandatory. Now the question is: whether such mandatory coverage is enough to cover injuries due to accidents?
Personal accident (PA) insurance is a facility that can be bought when buying your car insurance online. It helps to provide compensation to you and your dependents in case of an accident or collision leading to bodily injuries, disabilities and even death.
Personal accident cover for owner-driver
By default, such PA cover is available for the owner-driver but can be extended to others too. As per IRDAI guidelines, the PA cover, as standard, is fixed at an amount of ₹15 lakhs following the order of Madras High Court In 2018. The India Motor Tariff 2002 requires a personal accident insurance cover to be bought with all types of insurance plans, be it a third-party insurance cover or comprehensive car insurance plans. Not having a PA cover as part of your insurance policy will attract legal liabilities. The idea behind making a personal accident insurance as a mandatory requirement is to ensure compensation in case things go down south during an accident resulting in disability or death. You can visit the official website of IRDAI for further details.
However, as of January 2019, such personal accident cover need not be bought over and over again as a bundled offering. It resulted in multiple PA policies providing same coverage and bumping up the premium calculation. Now, it can be bought as a standalone cover. Thus, you can skip buying a PA policy if you already own one. Such a situation may arise in the event you own multiple cars. The insurance for your first car can bought as a bundled offering with PA cover while the subsequent insurance policy can be bought with the PA offering. This helps to keep the premiums affordable. To keep a tab on the premium amount impacted due to such additional covers, a car insurance premium calculator is a nifty tool.
Personal accident cover for paid driver or passengers
The law mandates a purchase of personal accidental coverage only for owner-drivers. However, the passengers in your car, as well as the paid driver, if appointed, is exposed to perils of an accident without any coverage. Thus, additional covers can be opted for such other passengers and paid drivers.
In case of a driver, the Workmen Compensation Act requires the employer to compensate the employee in case of injuries during the performance of their duties. Hence, motor insurance companies offer insurance coverage for such drivers too. Similarly, passengers can also be insured using optional coverage facilities. Insurance is the subject matter of solicitation. For more details on benefits, exclusions, limitations, terms and conditions, please read sales brochure/policy wording carefully before concluding a sale.
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