Published in Mint on May 11 2016, Written by Kapil Mehta General insurance in India is a poor second cousin to life insurance. That is because life insurance impacts people directly whereas general insurance, consisting of products like fire, liability, engineering and marine insurance, is usually purchased by companies. It typically gets relegated to an […]
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Deductible and its application are key to top-up health plans
Published in Mint on Apr 26 2016, Written by Abhishek Bondia My family and parents are covered by a general insurance policy by my employer. I want to buy a top-up health insurance plan. Shall I take it from the same insurer as my employer’s? Explain what top-up plans are. —Avijit Acharya Top-up plans are […]
Getting under the hood of motor insurance
Published in Mint on Apr 13 2016, Written by Kapil Mehta The most frequent insurance claims in India relate to motor accidents. Over 10,000 motor insurance claims are filed every day; in larger cities there are over 1,000 claims a day. The good news, if you can think of it like that, is that a […]
Typical home insurance policy does not cover cost of land
Published in Mint on March 29 2016, Written by Abhishek Bondia Is health insurance valid when one is on foreign travel? I’m taking my grandparents on holiday across Europe in another three months. They are medically covered. If something happens when we are abroad, what is the process of facilitating medical insurance? —Akshara Purakayastha A […]
Ulips allow free switching of funds for a few times
Published in Mint on, Jul 09 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta I had a pension policy and an endowment plan for which I have not been paying premiums for the last three years. Is it better to keep the endowment policy as paid up till maturity (2023)? The vested bonus amount is Rs.1.94 lakh in […]
Underwriting in critical illness plans is more stringent
Published in Mint on, Jul 02 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta I am looking for a health insurance policy for my father aged 52. He is a tobacco user (consumes 6-7 sachets of gutkha in a day). If we take a health policy without disclosing this fact and later in case he suffers from any […]
For group health insurance you need to cover 10 lives
Published in Mint on, Jun 04, 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta I am 53 years old and self-employed. Is it possible to take group health insurance? —Jagadish CA There are two requirements that you will need to fulfill to buy group health insurance. First, you need to cover at least 10 lives. Second, the lives […]
Several life insurers offer immediate annuities
Published in Mint on, May 14 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta I am 29 years old and have a term insurance with a premium of Rs.16,500 for Rs. 1 crore cover. I bought it last year. Recently, I saw that the same company has also launched online term insurance, which is cheaper by Rs.4,000. Will […]
Most health policies cover cataract after a waiting period
Published in Mint on, May 07, 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta Could you tell me if there is a health insurance policy that covers delivery procedures at a private hospital? My wife is in her sixth month of pregnancy. —Ashish Insurers will cover risk or an event only if there is some uncertainty around the […]
When taking term cover, undergo tests to ensure smooth claims
Published in Mint on, Apr 16 2013, Written by Kapil Mehta I am 28 years old and I want to buy a term insurance cover of Rs.1 crore. What is the difference between term plans offered by public and private insurers? I understand public insurers call for medical tests if the sum assured exceeds a […]