7 Questions Car Insurance Companies Ask at the Time of Purchasing or Renewing a Policy. Check out Kotak General Insurance's car insurance online for more.
Car insurance providers ask a few questions when you purchase or renew a policy to better understand your insurance needs. Check out this post to know 7 such questions.
Choosing the right car insurance policy is about understanding your insurance needs and matching them with the available products. But to assist you in selecting the right insurance policy, it is essential for the insurers to know about your requirements as well.
For this reason, when you purchase or renew car insurance online or offline, the insurance providers ask a few questions which should be answered as accurately as possible.
The insurer would first like to know your vehicle's make, model, and manufacture year. The make and model help the insurer know the approximate cost of the vehicle. Similarly, the manufacture year enables them to calculate vehicle depreciation.
Insurers consider these details to calculate the premium you’ll have to pay for the selected insurance policy.
You’ll also be asked to provide your car's registration number when purchasing or renewing a car insurance policy. The registration number works as an identification number that proves vehicle ownership and RTO registration of the car.
As the insurance policy will be issued on the registration number you provide to the insurer, ensure you cross-check the number before submitting.
The insurer will also ask for personal details, like your mobile number and email address. These details are generally used by insurers to send insurance-related communication and other notifications.
Moreover, when you purchase car insurance online, the insurance certificate and other documents are sent to your registered email address.
You might be using your car for personal or commercial purposes. If it is a commercial vehicle, it’ll pose additional risks to the insurer compared to a car only used for personal purposes. As a result, the premium for commercial vehicles is slightly higher than for personal vehicles.
Note that insurers will reject your claim if the vehicle is used for reasons not explicitly disclosed to the insurer. So, if the vehicle is used for commercial purposes, ensure you purchase insurance for a commercial vehicle.
The insurer would like to know where you live, as location also influences the insurance premium. Car insurance policies are generally slightly costlier in urban cities than in rural areas.
It is because traffic congestion, theft, and accidents, are more common in cities. Due to this, insurers are required to carry a higher risk level than insuring vehicles in rural areas. So, the higher risk is compensated through higher premiums.
If you’re renewing car insurance online or offline, the insurer would also like to know whether your current policy is active or expired. The information is also used in premium calculation.
It is wise to renew car insurance before the current policy expires to ensure complete protection at all times. Remember, you lose the safety net of car insurance if your policy has already expired.
No Claim Bonus or NCB helps reduce insurance renewal premiums up to a specific limit if you’ve not filed a claim in the previous policy year. The NCB ranges from 10% to 50% for 1 to 5 consecutive claim-free years.
So, the insurer would like to know if you have an existing NCB to deduct the applicable discount from the insurance premium.
Be cautious while purchasing car insurance
The insurer will use your answers to these questions to generate your car insurance policy. Any error from your end could lead to severe problems, like claim rejections, in the future. So, provide accurate details and cross-check all the information before submitting.