We live in busy times, with
commuters pressed for time continually struggling to gain pace on increasingly
jam-packed roads. It’s that all too familiar recipe for disaster we’ve all
caught a whiff off at some point and that we hope we never have to taste. But
let’s be real, road accidents have become as familiar an occurrence as traffic
jams, and so it’s best to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. That’s where
Third Party Liability Car Insurance comes in. Also referred to as ‘act only
cover’ and ‘motor third party insurance,’ third party insurance is a risk cover
enacted as a mandate by the Motor Vehicle Act of India. Just having third party
insurance, however, is little use unless you’re aware of all it encompasses and
serves you with. Here is all you should know about third-party liability car
insurance…
What
Third Party Liability insurance for cars actually means
As the name suggests, a third party
insurance policy provides cover to the insured person against claims of losses
made by a third party that the insured person’s car has been in an accident
with. This type of insurance, depending upon the clauses involved, may or may
not cover for both bodily harm and loss of property. Note that the insured
person is responsible for losses incurred by him and gets no cover for the same
from the insurance company, irrespective of how they came to be.
How
Third Party Liability insurance for cars works
Think of two cars that have the
misfortune of being involved in an accident wherein the driver/passenger in car
B suffers physical injury or damage to property and decides to press charges
against the driver/owner of car A. In this scenario, the third party liability
car insurance held by the driver/owner of car A would secure him/her against
the legal responsibility for the accident. So, all that the insured is
effectively required to do is to claim his insurance. Once the application for
claiming compensation for the damages incurred has been made, an FIR needs to
be filed with the designated police station, providing all documents the
process requires. A case is then registered with the Motor Accidents Claims
Tribunal. Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDA)
decides on the amount to be compensated. Once the court delivers its verdict, the
insurance company will repay that full sum to the victim.
How
to claim your Third Party Liability car insurance
●
Every insurance company will tell
you to reach out to them at the earliest possible hour and inform their
representatives about the accident that you’ve been involved in. You can call
up the company’s customer care as soon as you are able to and make them aware
of the incident and its particulars.
●
Once the FIR has been lodged by the
third party and their demand for compensation has been documented, the
insurance company gets notified of the same. On receiving a court summons, the
officials from the insurance company will usually get in touch with you to
share the details of the claim settlement.
●
At this point, the insurance company
will likely ask you to provide them with the claim form along with other
documents that they require to process the claim further.
●
Most insurance companies now offer
their customers the facility to register their claims online. All you have to
do is go to the company’s website and enter details like name and policy number
to raise a claim.
Things
to consider when buying Third Party car insurance
Go through the policy details and
make sure you have a clear understanding of what the policy will cover. Your
policy should include the following:
●
Damage caused to the third party’s
property.
●
The bodily harm suffered by the
third party.
●
The accidental death of the third
party.
●
Permanent disability or death of the
driver/owner of the insured car.
Third
Party Liability Insurance or Comprehensive Car Insurance?
Comprehensive car insurance,
compared to third party liability insurance, provides widely extensive
coverage, including accidental cover for the insured, damage caused by human
acts like vandalism and theft, as well as natural calamities like floods,
storms, and earthquakes. But since third party car insurance is a mandate, a
lot of car owners remain oblivious to additional benefits they can claim with
the broader coverage of a comprehensive insurance plan. The premium for
comprehensive car insurance is considerably higher than that in case of third
party insurance and should be one of the significant points of consideration
when buying or renewing car insurance. The commercial value of your vehicle
should be the deciding factor here. If you drive an aged, low-value vehicle,
sticking with third-party liability insurance is a good move. Those with new,
high-value expensive cars, on the other hand, will be better placed opting for
a comprehensive car insurance plan.
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