Home Insurance protects your home from natural & man-made disasters and shelters the structure & contents of your home. The Policy covers the losses occurred to the building (structure) of your home or to its contents due to natural and man-made catastrophes.
What are the risks covered under Home Insurance?
Home Insurance protects the building and contents of your home against natural and man-made calamities like fire, earthquakes, storms, cyclones, tempests, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods or inundation, lightning strike, explosion, landslides, impact by vehicles or aircraft, and bursting or overflowing of water tanks and pipes. It also covers the contents (jewelry also) of your home in case of Burglary
What are the optional covers available?
The optional covers include Terrorism and Additional expenses of rent for alternative accommodation.
What do you mean by Alternative Accommodation?
Alternative Accommodation is an optional cover to the policy. If you are forced to shift to an alternative accommodation because your home is destroyed by an insured peril, then you will also be covered against the additional rent.
Is the sum insured calculated differently for structure of home & it contents?
Yes, the sum insured is calculated differently for the structure & for its contents, Sum Insured for the structure is calculated based on the Reconstruction value. Whereas the contents of your home such as furniture, durables, clothes, utensils, jewelry, etc. - are to be valued on market value basis i.e. the current market value of similar items after depreciation. Depreciation does not apply for jewelry.
What is the Reconstruction value?
Reconstruction value is defined as the cost incurred to reconstruct the home if it is damaged.
What is the procedure to calculate sum insured for the structure of home?
The Sum insured is calculated by multiplying the built up area of your home with the construction rate per sq. feet.
Does Home Insurance cover any loss to my Jewelry?
Yes, it covers loss to jewelry due to burglary or robbery but has a certain limit to it.
I have a rented house, how can I buy Home Insurance?
You have got an option to take a cover which guards the contents of your home against fire, other natural calamities, terrorism and burglary. It includes Household Appliances, furniture & fixtures, Jewelry etc.
If I use my Home for business purposes, can I insure it?
No, Home used for business purposes are not covered.
If we friends share a home, can we go for Home Insurance?
Yes, each one of you can buy a separate Home Insurance Policy for your part of asset.
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August 23, 2010
Health Insurance
What is Health Insurance?
It is a contract between the Insurer & the Insured wherein the former agrees to pay to the latter hospitalization expenses to the extent of an agreed sum assured in the event of any medical treatment out of an illness or an injury. In the nutshell the Health Insurance is a policy which covers you & your family against medical expenses due to sickness, accident etc. The Insured in return has to pay a regular premium to the insurer.
Why you need Health Insurance?
It is indubitable that Health Insurance has become an important element in one’s life owing to increasing medical costs these days & uncertain environment; it comes to your rescue acting as precautionary measure in today’s tough time while acting as a life saver boat in case of any medical contingency. If you don’t have Health Insurance, you end up paying hefty medical bills in the event of hospitalization out of illness or injury, therefore insuring your family against Health Insurance is a must thing & should surely be a part of your regular financial planning. All we have is our health which needs to be protected & taken care of by acquiring the best health insurance policy suited for us.
Types of Health Insurance Plans
Health Insurance Plans are segregated into three categories, firstly the Mediclaim Plans by Non-Life or General Insurance Companies, secondly the Hospitalization Cash Policy by both Life & Non-Life Insurers and thirdly the Critical Care Plans offered by both Life & Non-Life Insurers.
Mediclaim Policy is basically a reimbursement plan offered by General Insurers wherein the insured gets reimbursed of the total bill amount of the medical expenses to the extent of an agreed sum assured. It includes the room charges, ICU charges, surgery & doctor charges etc. It includes a lot of exclusions which the policy holder must read before buying the Mediclaim.
The Mediclaim includes the following two further categories:
1) Family Floater Plan: It is a very common plan these days which covers your entire family under one premium payment giving coverage to the family members together. This plan is being offered by almost all the General Insurance Companies with a specific criterion of covering individuals in the age group between 90days and 55years.
2) Group Mediclaim Insurance: It is the second variant of Mediclaim which covers a group of individuals simultaneously. This form of insurance includes the category of Employer’s Health Insurance Cover wherein the sum assured normally varies between Rs. 15,000 and Rs.5,00,000.
Hospitalization Cash Policy is a plan offered by both Life & Non-Life Insurers wherein the Insured gets pre-determined cash benefit on a daily basis irrespective of the hospitalization expenses being incurred. It is not a fully comprehensive health insurance plan because it doesn’t cover the cost of medical treatment but pays lump sum amount to the policy holder on per day basis during the treatment/hospitalization. It acts a complimentary plan to the Mediclaim plans. Offer Hospital cash benefit plan among Non-Life Insurers.
Critical-Care Plan: It is offered by both Life & General Insurers covering an individual for certain specified critical illnesses like cancer, stroke etc. This is also offered as a rider by Life Insurance companies for quite some time now attached to their Life Insurance Plans. You must take a cover either as a rider or as a standalone plan in your portfolio.
Health Insurance Tax Benefits
Health Insurance products are eligible for tax benefits under section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Premium paid under health insurance holds a tax deduction upto Rs 15,000 for you, your spouse and dependent children.
Further more you can also claim another Rs. 15, 000 for tax deduction for your parents, in case of senior citizens (65 years or more) the above deductions are increased to Rs. 20,000
Family Floater Plan-in detail
For instance a person wants a health insurance for himself, his spouse & their children, the Family Floater plan offers insurance coverage to the entire family under one premium payment. Let’s take an example wherein the person insures himself, his spouse & the dependent children with the individual insurance plans with a sum assured of Rs. 1 lakh each, he ends up paying premium ranging between Rs. 1000 - Rs. 2000 for each family member. On the other hand if the person would have opted for the family floater plan with the sum assured of Rs. 3 lakhs, the total premium would surely be less than the separate premium payments in individual health insurance plans. Moreover the separate health plan holds the cover of only Rs. 1 lakh as against Rs. 3 lakh in case of the Floater plan thus helping the family in case the medical treatment costs go beyond that.
Cashless Hospitalization
Cashless settlement implies that an individual doesn’t have to settle a hospital bill out of his pocket; rather the bill gets settled directly by the insurance company. When you buy a Health Plan you are issued a Health Card along with the policy documents which would entitle you to get cashless claim at any of the company’s network hospitals.
What do you do in case of a claim?
You should walk into a network hospital & get the treatment done & the bills paid through the Health Card. In case of hospitalization you need to give the card number to the network hospital, you must pre-authorize from the TPA (Intermediary between the Insurance Company & the hospital) & will process the cashless settlement after the verification of your policy details. You should know the formalities required for cashless settlement as some insurance companies are required to be notified 48 hours before hospitalization.
If you don’t opt for cashless settlement, you need to settle bills at the hospital and get them reimbursed later.
Health Insurance Covers & Benefits
• Room & Boarding expenses: There are further limits to this feature varying from company to company.
• Ambulance Charges: They are normally covered upto Rs. 1000.
• ICU charges, doctor, consulting, anesthetist and surgeon fees, operation and other diagnostic and surgical material costs are covered.
• Day-Care expenses such as Chemotherapy, Dialysis & Radiotherapy etc.
• Pre & Post Hospitalization Expenses which normally are 30 days prior and 60 days after hospitalization.
• Cashless Hospitalization is offered by almost all Non-Life Insurers.
Important Pointers in Health Insurance
• You must read the policy exclusions & the limitations in various covers properly before buying a Health Insurance plan because you should know what all covers your policy include & exclude.
• You should note the number of network hospitals covered in the Insurer’s list of network hospitals as this will help you to get cashless & hassle-free claim.
• You must read the names of critical diseases being covered before buying a Critical-Care plan.
• You must know that the medical expenses incurred within the first 30 days of buying the health insurance plan are not covered unless the injury has occurred out of an accident.
• You must disclose all the Pre-Existing diseases to the insurer before buying the health plan as the insurer doesn’t cover them, now a day’s General Insurers have started covering these diseases normally after 3-4 years varying from company to company.
It is a contract between the Insurer & the Insured wherein the former agrees to pay to the latter hospitalization expenses to the extent of an agreed sum assured in the event of any medical treatment out of an illness or an injury. In the nutshell the Health Insurance is a policy which covers you & your family against medical expenses due to sickness, accident etc. The Insured in return has to pay a regular premium to the insurer.
Why you need Health Insurance?
It is indubitable that Health Insurance has become an important element in one’s life owing to increasing medical costs these days & uncertain environment; it comes to your rescue acting as precautionary measure in today’s tough time while acting as a life saver boat in case of any medical contingency. If you don’t have Health Insurance, you end up paying hefty medical bills in the event of hospitalization out of illness or injury, therefore insuring your family against Health Insurance is a must thing & should surely be a part of your regular financial planning. All we have is our health which needs to be protected & taken care of by acquiring the best health insurance policy suited for us.
Types of Health Insurance Plans
Health Insurance Plans are segregated into three categories, firstly the Mediclaim Plans by Non-Life or General Insurance Companies, secondly the Hospitalization Cash Policy by both Life & Non-Life Insurers and thirdly the Critical Care Plans offered by both Life & Non-Life Insurers.
Mediclaim Policy is basically a reimbursement plan offered by General Insurers wherein the insured gets reimbursed of the total bill amount of the medical expenses to the extent of an agreed sum assured. It includes the room charges, ICU charges, surgery & doctor charges etc. It includes a lot of exclusions which the policy holder must read before buying the Mediclaim.
The Mediclaim includes the following two further categories:
1) Family Floater Plan: It is a very common plan these days which covers your entire family under one premium payment giving coverage to the family members together. This plan is being offered by almost all the General Insurance Companies with a specific criterion of covering individuals in the age group between 90days and 55years.
2) Group Mediclaim Insurance: It is the second variant of Mediclaim which covers a group of individuals simultaneously. This form of insurance includes the category of Employer’s Health Insurance Cover wherein the sum assured normally varies between Rs. 15,000 and Rs.5,00,000.
Hospitalization Cash Policy is a plan offered by both Life & Non-Life Insurers wherein the Insured gets pre-determined cash benefit on a daily basis irrespective of the hospitalization expenses being incurred. It is not a fully comprehensive health insurance plan because it doesn’t cover the cost of medical treatment but pays lump sum amount to the policy holder on per day basis during the treatment/hospitalization. It acts a complimentary plan to the Mediclaim plans. Offer Hospital cash benefit plan among Non-Life Insurers.
Critical-Care Plan: It is offered by both Life & General Insurers covering an individual for certain specified critical illnesses like cancer, stroke etc. This is also offered as a rider by Life Insurance companies for quite some time now attached to their Life Insurance Plans. You must take a cover either as a rider or as a standalone plan in your portfolio.
Health Insurance Tax Benefits
Health Insurance products are eligible for tax benefits under section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Premium paid under health insurance holds a tax deduction upto Rs 15,000 for you, your spouse and dependent children.
Further more you can also claim another Rs. 15, 000 for tax deduction for your parents, in case of senior citizens (65 years or more) the above deductions are increased to Rs. 20,000
Family Floater Plan-in detail
For instance a person wants a health insurance for himself, his spouse & their children, the Family Floater plan offers insurance coverage to the entire family under one premium payment. Let’s take an example wherein the person insures himself, his spouse & the dependent children with the individual insurance plans with a sum assured of Rs. 1 lakh each, he ends up paying premium ranging between Rs. 1000 - Rs. 2000 for each family member. On the other hand if the person would have opted for the family floater plan with the sum assured of Rs. 3 lakhs, the total premium would surely be less than the separate premium payments in individual health insurance plans. Moreover the separate health plan holds the cover of only Rs. 1 lakh as against Rs. 3 lakh in case of the Floater plan thus helping the family in case the medical treatment costs go beyond that.
Cashless Hospitalization
Cashless settlement implies that an individual doesn’t have to settle a hospital bill out of his pocket; rather the bill gets settled directly by the insurance company. When you buy a Health Plan you are issued a Health Card along with the policy documents which would entitle you to get cashless claim at any of the company’s network hospitals.
What do you do in case of a claim?
You should walk into a network hospital & get the treatment done & the bills paid through the Health Card. In case of hospitalization you need to give the card number to the network hospital, you must pre-authorize from the TPA (Intermediary between the Insurance Company & the hospital) & will process the cashless settlement after the verification of your policy details. You should know the formalities required for cashless settlement as some insurance companies are required to be notified 48 hours before hospitalization.
If you don’t opt for cashless settlement, you need to settle bills at the hospital and get them reimbursed later.
Health Insurance Covers & Benefits
• Room & Boarding expenses: There are further limits to this feature varying from company to company.
• Ambulance Charges: They are normally covered upto Rs. 1000.
• ICU charges, doctor, consulting, anesthetist and surgeon fees, operation and other diagnostic and surgical material costs are covered.
• Day-Care expenses such as Chemotherapy, Dialysis & Radiotherapy etc.
• Pre & Post Hospitalization Expenses which normally are 30 days prior and 60 days after hospitalization.
• Cashless Hospitalization is offered by almost all Non-Life Insurers.
Important Pointers in Health Insurance
• You must read the policy exclusions & the limitations in various covers properly before buying a Health Insurance plan because you should know what all covers your policy include & exclude.
• You should note the number of network hospitals covered in the Insurer’s list of network hospitals as this will help you to get cashless & hassle-free claim.
• You must read the names of critical diseases being covered before buying a Critical-Care plan.
• You must know that the medical expenses incurred within the first 30 days of buying the health insurance plan are not covered unless the injury has occurred out of an accident.
• You must disclose all the Pre-Existing diseases to the insurer before buying the health plan as the insurer doesn’t cover them, now a day’s General Insurers have started covering these diseases normally after 3-4 years varying from company to company.
How much Health Insurance one should have?
Start early
One must buy health insurance at an early stage because the premiums are lower when you are young and the rate of increase in health insurance premium is directly proportional to your age. Health insurers assume that at an early age the chances of making a claim are lower, as against the person who takes health insurance at a later age say 40 years and is more prone to suffer from diseases. Moreover if claims are not made in any particular year, it is likely that the insurer might increase the cover provided or/and reduce the cost of premium.
The importance of Health Insurance can’t be ignored in today’s world of expensive medical care & looking at its benefits at a younger age, one must insure himself/herself against any medical injury/illness early in life.
How much of cover is needed
The requirement for Health Insurance varies from individual to individual. It depends upon the factors such as your age, current annual income & expenses, marital status, family background etc.
Age: During the early years of your life you might require a simple health policy to cover the expenses that would be incurred if you fall ill or meet with an accident. The possibility of occurrence of critical diseases is low at this age therefore a higher cover is not required. As you grow old you should keep increasing your sum assured/cover.
In case of higher age when you could be more prone to some of the critical diseases, you can get the Critical Care Rider added to your health policy- because this is the time when you need to guard yourself from a major financial setback. Make sure that your family is not burdened with any kind of financial consequences due to major illnesses.
Marital Status: If you are married it’s a good idea to ensure that your spouse is also covered against any medical emergency. Go for a Family Floater Plan wherein you and your spouse will be covered under one policy (one premium). In case your wife is salaried, you must make sure that she is covered under employee insurance also if it is available as the Group Insurance covers for Maternity expenses. After the birth of your child you can get your child also included in the Family Floater Plan.
Family Background: If you have a family history of some diseases like Diabetes, take a shield of Critical Care plan which will cover you against all these major illnesses that you might be prone to.
Income & expenses: Go for a higher health insurance cover if you think that the cost of your family’s medical treatment would be higher (higher room fare etc). Therefore a lot depends upon how much is your family’s current expenses & income. If you wish to take a high quality room during hospitalization then you must opt for a higher sum assured health cover.
One must buy health insurance at an early stage because the premiums are lower when you are young and the rate of increase in health insurance premium is directly proportional to your age. Health insurers assume that at an early age the chances of making a claim are lower, as against the person who takes health insurance at a later age say 40 years and is more prone to suffer from diseases. Moreover if claims are not made in any particular year, it is likely that the insurer might increase the cover provided or/and reduce the cost of premium.
The importance of Health Insurance can’t be ignored in today’s world of expensive medical care & looking at its benefits at a younger age, one must insure himself/herself against any medical injury/illness early in life.
How much of cover is needed
The requirement for Health Insurance varies from individual to individual. It depends upon the factors such as your age, current annual income & expenses, marital status, family background etc.
Age: During the early years of your life you might require a simple health policy to cover the expenses that would be incurred if you fall ill or meet with an accident. The possibility of occurrence of critical diseases is low at this age therefore a higher cover is not required. As you grow old you should keep increasing your sum assured/cover.
In case of higher age when you could be more prone to some of the critical diseases, you can get the Critical Care Rider added to your health policy- because this is the time when you need to guard yourself from a major financial setback. Make sure that your family is not burdened with any kind of financial consequences due to major illnesses.
Marital Status: If you are married it’s a good idea to ensure that your spouse is also covered against any medical emergency. Go for a Family Floater Plan wherein you and your spouse will be covered under one policy (one premium). In case your wife is salaried, you must make sure that she is covered under employee insurance also if it is available as the Group Insurance covers for Maternity expenses. After the birth of your child you can get your child also included in the Family Floater Plan.
Family Background: If you have a family history of some diseases like Diabetes, take a shield of Critical Care plan which will cover you against all these major illnesses that you might be prone to.
Income & expenses: Go for a higher health insurance cover if you think that the cost of your family’s medical treatment would be higher (higher room fare etc). Therefore a lot depends upon how much is your family’s current expenses & income. If you wish to take a high quality room during hospitalization then you must opt for a higher sum assured health cover.
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