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| Insurance for as low as Rs 99 ensures safe travel |
| Tinesh Bhasin / Mumbai Feb 12, 2010, 00:32 IST |
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Almost all ticketing sites and airlines offer insurance with online bookings.
Sudhir Sharma was booking a flight ticket from New Delhi to his hometown, but was sceptical about the weather. There were regular delays, and even cancellations, due to fog since Sharma reached the Capital. If the same happened, Sharma would incur expenses for staying back one more day.
While booking, he noticed an option of domestic travel insurance on the ticketing website. The policy, available for Rs 129, offered to pay Rs 1,500 for six hours of delay. Sharma bought the policy, though he reached his destination on time.
For fliers, it is difficult to ignore the domestic travel insurance policy due to its low cost. A policy is available for as low as Rs 99, and up to Rs 249. Coverage spans flight delays or cancellation to loss of baggage and personal accident.
“Buying a policy is an individual decision and situation-specific. If the traveller feels that weather can create problems in the journey, like the Delhi fog or Mumbai rain, it will make sense to cover oneself against unforeseen circumstances,” said Lovaii Navlakhi, a certified financial planner. “A frequent traveller should buy a policy which is effective for the entire year,” he added.
Almost all ticketing websites and airlines offer the insurance with online bookings. “Of the passengers booking domestic air tickets online, 15 per cent buy travel insurance policy,” said Gaurav Garg, CEO and managing director, Tata AIG General Insurance Company.
Tata AIG offers this product for online booking through SpiceJet, Go Air, Cleartrip.com, Yatra.com and Hermes India. It has a standard policy for all partners with a fixed premium of Rs 129.
ICICI Lombard General Insurance has tied up with Ezeego, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines. ICICI’s premium varies with respective partners. For instance, among the two policies the insurer offers to Kingfisher customers, one comes for Rs 99 and the other for Rs 149. Apollo DKV Health Insurance underwrites polices for Makemytrip.com. The premium is Rs 111.
A basic policy offers personal accident cover; hospitalisation expenses in case of injury; loss of baggage and compensation for cancellations or delays. Just like any insurance product, conditions apply for each. Before taking the cover, a flier should understand the scope of the coverage.
Policy Commencement: Most of the covers come in effect the day the person boards the flight, with exception to cancellations. All the companies offer 30 days of cover or until the person returns to the destination of origin — whichever is earlier. The insurance remains active even in case of multi-city travel.
Delays: For an individual to claim for flight delays, the carrier should make the person wait for at least six hours. This is a time-linked compensation. There is a sum assured for delay over six hours. For example, ICICI Lombard’s policy for Jet Airways, called JetProtect Plan 149, pays Rs 2,000 if the airline has made the insured to wait for over six hours. This is essentially to provide for expenses incurred for food and lodging. “The person does not need to produce any bill. If the airline confirms the delay, we pay the sum insured,” said an ICICI Lombard spokesperson. Apollo DKV assures Rs 1,000 for delays and Tata AIG pays Rs 1,500.
Trip Cancellation: The policy covers cancellation because of death of a close relative or the travel companion, or for cancellations due to weather. Here, the company compensates for the cancellation charges. Some policies cover expenses incurred to get back to the hometown in such a situation.
Loss of Baggage: This coverage has clauses depending on number of bags and items. Insurers reimburse only if the baggage is checked-in and is lost permanently. The customer needs a letter from the airline stating the above. Loss of handbag is not covered.
If there is more than one bag, each bag has a maximum coverage of 50 per cent of the sum insured. This means, if one loses one out of two bags, one could claim only half the sum insured.
The drawback here is that none of the insurers provides cover for valuables, cash and any kind of security or tickets. A customer can avail of only 10 per cent of the sum insured for every item in the baggage. In addition, to claim loss of baggage, the person needs to lose the entire bag. If an item is stolen, the insured cannot make a claim.
Medical Emergency & Accidental Death: Insurance for medical emergencies does not cover psychiatric or mental disorders and pregnancy. For personal accident, the reimbursement with some insurance companies may depend on the seriousness of the injury. Apollo DKV, for instance, pays 50 per cent of the sum insured if there is loss of a limb or eyesight.
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