We all know that insuring your vehicle, car or two-wheeler, is mandated by the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. Every state or nation has set a minimum level of insurance that needs to be adopted by all two-wheeler owners so that they have a minimum amount of coverage for themselves and their vehicles. In India, Standard Third Party insurance is the minimum amount of coverage that bikers need to possess to drive their vehicle on public roads.
The number of two-wheeler accidents on Indian roads has shown a steep hike in the recent years and many a time these accidents not only cause harm to the driver or the pillion rider but also to people and properties in the surroundings. The main purpose of the Third Party Two-Wheeler insurance is to provide legal and financial security to the policy holder during any accident causing bodily injury, death, or disability to the third party or damage to third-party person properties.
WHAT IS COVERED UNDER THIRD PARTY TWO-WHEELER INSURANCE?
If you opt to buy a standard third party bike insurance policy online using a registration number, you can be assured to get the following coverage:
- The cost of any damage caused to the third party property if you are involved in the accident.
- The medical expenses involved in the treatment of the third party due to the harm caused to him/her by the accident you were involved in.
WHAT IS EXCLUDED?
The Third party two-wheeler insurance, though cheap, gives very limited insurance coverage. You will not be protected far damages caused to your bike due to accident or any other causes or for medical expenses resulting from the accident.
HOW TO CLAIM THIRD PARTY TWO-WHEELER INSURANCE?
The process of claiming 3rd party bike insurance is a little complex owing to the fact that it does not only include damages caused to you or your bike but involves damages caused to another person or property.
- Give notice to your insurance company as soon as possible to inform them about the claim. The sooner the insurer is informed, easier it is to recover your money.
- Remember to take down the policy details of the third party right after the incident has taken place.
- Keep important stuffs like medical bills, estimates of repair charges and police reports handy. Collect all possible details about the incident, like how the accident occurred, the injuries and damages sustained (if any) and the compensation amount you plan to claim
- Keep the record of the insurance claim handy. In case the process becomes controversial or structures into a lawsuit, you should be able to produce proper evidence supporting your claims.
- Give the insurer all possible reasons of why they should pay out on your claims.
Benefits Available on Two Wheeler Insurance Policy in India
Many of you might have searched for the term Best Two Wheeler insurance in India. Two Wheeler insurance is very much popular in India and there are almost 27 general insurance companies offering Two Wheeler insurance to the Indian customers. The Two Wheeler insurance premium charged by these insurance companies differs as per the coverage offered by these insurance companies. There are few factors which are to be considered before selecting the best Two Wheeler insurance from the list of available options.
- Claim Settlement Ratio & Cashless Garages
- After sales service
- Insured Declared Value (IDV)
- Premium
- Add-ons/Riders
The different types of two wheeler insurance policies in India
Two wheeler insurance is the most sought after insurance product in the Indian market due to the Motor insurance act which makes at least third party two wheeler insurance compulsory to ply in the public places. Most of the people have good knowledge of two wheeler insurance in India and are able to compare and decide the premiums before taking a two wheeler insurance policy.
A two wheeler insurance policy has two main types, namely: - Third party two wheeler insurance and Comprehensive Two wheeler insurance. Let us understand each of them to enable us to select the best type of two wheeler insurance. These types of two wheeler insurance can be opted both for the new two wheeler as well as the old two wheeler.
1. Third Party Two wheeler insurance:
Third party two wheeler insurance or “Liability only” two wheeler insurance or “Act only” two wheeler insurance is the compulsory two wheeler insurance in India as per the Motor Vehicles Act. Any party other than the insurance company and the customer of the two wheeler is referred to as third party, hence the name third party two wheeler insurance.
The death, disability and the damage to goods or property of the third party is covered under the TP policy of the two wheeler insurance. The claim bonus amount in case of Third party claims would be decided by the honourable courts and direct the insurance companies to settle the claim amount to the third parties on behalf of the two wheeler owner. This is the basic type of two wheeler insurance policy available in India and is compulsorily to be taken for any two wheeler to ply in public places.
The premium to be paid under the Third party type of insurance policy is decided by the Governing body for insurance, IRDA known as Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India. The two wheeler insurance rates in the Third party premium type of two wheeler insurance are subject to be revised each year depending on the loss ratio and other factors which are decided by the IRDA.
2. Comprehensive Insurance:
The other type of two wheeler insurance policy in India is the “Comprehensive Two wheeler Insurance” which includes the Own damage section as well as the Third party section. The Own damage section covers any loss or repairs to the two wheeler owned by the insured due to an insured peril.
The premium to be paid by the customer under the own damage section is decided by the insurance company unlike the third party insurance premium which is decided by the IRDA. The own damage premium rates are given by the IRDA and the insurance companies can decide the premium within those rates.
Insurance companies take utmost two wheelere while deciding the premium rates for own damage type of two wheeler insurance such that too high price may result in failure of the product and too less price might impact the profits of the insurance company.
3. Comprehensive with add-ons:
The other type of two wheeler insurance in India is the comprehensive two wheeler insurance with add ons covers such as Zero depreciation, Consumables, Engine protection etc. The most common type of add-on opted by the two wheeler insurance customer is the Zero Depreciation cover along with the comprehensive two wheeler insurance policy.
The “Zero depreciation” two wheeler insurance policy is also known as “Nil Depreciation” or “Bumper to Bumper” two wheeler insurance in India. This type of two wheeler insurance in India can be termed as the total coverage for two wheeler as the zero depreciation add-on enables the insurance companies to pay the complete claim amount without factoring depreciation. Bumper to bumper two wheeler insurance is an add-on or rider available under the own damage section of the two wheeler insurance policy.
These are all the types of two wheeler insurance in India and the customer can choose any type of two wheeler insurance depending upon his/her premium paying capacity, requirement, coverage etc. Two wheeler insurance renewal tips: The two wheeler insurance renewal quote should contain the extra coverage in the form of add-ons such as Bumper to bumper, Consumables etc., at a reasonable premium.
Here are the benefits of having a Third Party Two wheeler insurance
Third party two wheeler insurance is one of the section in the two wheeler insurance policy copy, the other being the own damage section under the two wheeler insurance policy copy. The third party section can be taken as a standalone insurance cover under the two wheeler insurance policy.
The premium for third party is decided by the government and the regulating body for insurance IRDA. The third party premium rates are subject to change every year depending upon the claims settled previous year and the gross premium underwritten by all the insurance companies taken into consideration.
Two wheeler insurance cost of third party premium is decided by the IRDA and is constant for all the insurance companies. Third party premium changes with the cubic capacity and the age of the vehicle.
Third party premium rates are decided by IRDA and are subject to change each year depending on the previous year premium collected, claims settled and many other factors.
Two wheeler insurance rates would increase if your two wheeler is fitted with the Bi-fuel system and other electrical and non electrical accessories. Both the own damage and third party premiums would be increased in this case.
Compulsory TP
The Motor Vehicles Act, 2019 has made it mandatory for the owner of the two wheeler to have at least a third party insurance if not the comprehensive insurance cover. The fine for not having the compulsory third part two wheeler insurance is up to Rs.5000/- and/or imprisonment of up to 3 months.
There are three slabs for the third party premium depending on the cubic capacity of the two wheeler. The highest premium to be paid for a two wheeler would typically not be more than Rs.10k which provides coverage for a year. Having a Third party insurance can save your hard earned money from being paid as fine and prevents you from imprisonment.
Death and Disability Claim
The death and disability accidental claims are covered under the third party two wheeler insurance policy. In general the third party claims are to be reported to the insurance companies and will be settled by the honorable courts. The amount of compensation to be paid by the insurance companies to the kin of the deceased is decided by the honorable courts after taking many factors into consideration. These factors include the earning capacity of the deceased and other factors such as the age of the deceased etc.
In the absence of the third party two wheeler insurance policy the compensation awarded by the honorable courts for third party death and disability claims should be settled from your own pocket. There can be instances where the courts action your property to settle the third party claims in the absence of valid third party insurance.
Property damage claims
The third party property damage due to your two wheeler is covered under the third party two wheeler insurance policy. The Third party property damage is covered up to Rs.7.5Lacs under the third party two wheeler insurance. The limit under this section can also be restricted to Rs.6000 for a decrease in the overall premium to be paid under your third party two wheeler insurance policy.
The property damage claims of the third parties due to accidents are settled under the third party two wheeler insurance policy up to a maximum limit of Rs.7.5Lacs and anything above the mentioned limit has to be borne by the insured customer. The third party property damage claims doesn’t fall under the jurisdiction of civil courts and are generally handled by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal.
Personal accident cover for owner/driver
Personal accident cover for owner/driver is mandatory for a sum insured of Rs.15 Lacs to be taken under the compulsory third party two wheeler insurance policy. The personal accident cover for owner/driver covers the claims due to death or disability of the owner/driver at the time of accident whilst driving the insured vehicle.
The personal accident cover sum insured is Rs.15 Lacs and the customer has an option to purchase a single personal accident cover for all of his two wheelers in the form of Standalone personal accident cover for owner/driver.
Need for Third party two wheeler insurance
The need for a valid third party two wheeler insurance has increased these days due to the increasing road accidents resulting in the loss of lives of the passengers. A third party death claim may result in the loss of more than one life and the claim amount may run up to several Lacs in some instances where the two wheeler owner/driver might not be able to pay without the help of insurance company.
The two wheeler cost are on the rise each year due to the increase in Third party insurance costs. This increase is attributed to the increase in claim amount settlement in the third party cases by the insurance companies.
If you opt to save yourself from running into bankruptcy it is important to purchase a third party two wheeler insurance policy for your two wheeler while driving in public places. Also having valid third party two wheeler insurance saves you from paying unnecessary fines and prison imprisonment.
Best third party two wheeler insurance quotes available on www.policybachat.com for your two wheeler.