Car Insurance: 5 Things You Must Know

By Author: Neha Sharma
Total Articles: 170
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"We take life insurance to protect our family financially. We take health insurance to protect ourselves from the rising medical costs. We even take travel insurance to cover the risks of travel. But what about insurance to protect things we own, such as our car? Our vehicles face a lot of risk of loss or damage in the form of accidents, thefts, break ins or other damages. To protect against these risks, car owners are generally advised to take car insurance.
Car insurance is a type of insurance that covers a motor vehicle against different losses. Getting vehicle insurance is mandatory and the car owner can be fined for not getting car insurance.

Here are 5 things you need to know about car insurance:

1. Yearly renewal:
Vehicle insurance is a type of general insurance. This means the policy duration is one year from the date of purchase. It needs to be renewed every year. It also means that the car owner can change the insurer from one year to the other. However, insurance companies give benefits to car owners who have been their customers in the form of no claim bonus.

2. Value of insurance ...
... policy:
The value of the insurance policy depends on the declared value of the car. This is taken as the ex showroom price. However, the insured value does not remain the same every year. Since the value of the car reduces year to year because of depreciation, the car insurance policy reflects the reduced value of the car every time it is renewed. The value of the car also includes the value of different accessories.

3. Coverage:
Vehicle insurance typically covers different losses and damages such as:

• Loss or damage due to natural calamities such as earthquake, floods, lightning, hurricane, cyclone, heavy rains etc.
• Loss or damage due to man made disasters such as theft, burglary, damage to parts of the car, riots, strikes, terror attacks
• Personal accident coverage which covers any damage to the driver of the vehicle
• Third party liability which covers any claims that a third party may make against the driver of the vehicle for any damage caused to the third party. These covers are usually more expensive and separate from regular car insurance.
• Towing fee waiver in case of accidents when the car needs to be towed

4. Exclusions:
Even though car insurance covers a wide range of losses, there are some exclusions to this policy

• Any loss or damage caused when the driver is driving under the influence of alcohol or any drugs
• Any loss or damage caused to the vehicle when it is driven by someone who is not insured i.e if any third party drives the car and causes damage, it is not covered under vehicle insurance
• Deliberate and purposeful damage to the car
• Any loss caused as a consequence of war
• Any breakdowns or mechanical faults are not covered under car insurance
• Wear and tear of the vehicle associated with the passage of time

5. Availability:
Car insurance can be purchased offline through agents or it can be purchased online. It is very convenient to buy car insurance online through the insurance company’s website or through different insurance aggregators.

Author Bio:- Neha Sharma is a finance student who loves to write in her free time. She has spent considerable time researching about car insurance. Through her work, she has listed facts about the same