India accounts for the highest road fatalities in the world. Considering the rising rate of accidents, it’s important to stay financially protective and to be prepared for such risk. Being insured with the adequate amount of coverage is the best protective measure that we can take. Accidents are unpredictable and consequences of such mishaps are far-reaching. When you are riding on the road, it’s better to have a cover for yourself and your loved one’s travelling along with you.
Personal Accidental Cover
Car insurance which is mandatory by law (third party insurance) extends accidental cover for bodily injury and death of a third party as part of your legal liability cover. And standard comprehensive car insurance plan includes personal accidental cover for you. Basically, it offers compensation for death and bodily injury caused due to accidents. If you wish to have a cover for your co-passengers (family members, friends, relatives etc) and your paid driver against any such unforeseen eventualities, you can do so by opting for passenger cover add-on. It’s a specific and optional add-on that can be purchased separately on top of your basic comprehensive car insurance plan by paying little more on regular premium.
Let’s understand what it covers and how useful it is to have a personal accidental cover for passenger:
Cover for Paid Driver
Under the passenger cover add-on, you can avail personal accidental cover for your paid driver. Now, let’s understand how crucial it is to have a cover with the below situation:
Arun had always dreamt of buying Honda CR-V. He was very happy when he finally purchased it last month. He also had bought a car insurance plan through a broker for which he paid around Rs.22000. He wanted to travel around with his family. The only problem was he dint know how to drive. He finally hired a driver. He and his family were enjoying their new car until their car met with an accident. Due to the accident, car was damaged and sent for repair. Driver was badly injured and taken to hospital. He was discharged after a week of treatment with a total cost of Rs. 1.2 lakh which was borne by Arun. In this case, Arun had only received compensation for car repair as the policy he had purchased through broker was no-frills comprehensive car insurance. He could have received the compensation for driver’s hospitalization if he had bought an additional personal accidental coverage for his paid driver.
Hence, it’s very crucial and important to have the financial protection by way of additional accidental cover for paid driver also as you are legally liable to pay him in case of any loss during unfortunate event.
Cover for Co-passengers
Under passenger cover add-on in car insurance, you can avail personal accidental cover for both named and unnamed passengers who travel along with you in your car. They can be your family members, friends, relatives and colleagues or anyone who travels with you to the extent of Rs. 2 lakh. The amount of compensation may vary depending on the nature of disability or loss. Number of passengers that you can include in the cover depends on the seating capacity of your four-wheeler.
Conclusion
To sum it up, keeping in mind the increasing road fatalities, it’s highly recommended to buy passenger cover add-on as you are responsible for the safety of fellow drivers and co-passengers travelling along with you in your car. It’s better to pay the nominal cost of premium to avoid major financial burdens in future. It’s essential to strengthen your car insurance policy with relevant add-ons based on your need to stay financially protected.
Stay alert, stay insured and enjoy your ride!
Know more about Accident cover at https://www.acko.com/car-insurance/add-on-covers/accident-cover/