Motor Vehicle insurance

Vehicle insurance (also known as car insurance, motor insurance, or auto insurance) is insurance for cars, trucks, motorcycles, and other road vehicles. Its primary use is to provide financial protection against physical damage or bodily injury resulting from traffic collisions and against liability that could also arise from incidents in a vehicle. Vehicle insurance may additionally offer financial protection against theft of the vehicle, and against damage to the vehicle sustained from events other than traffic collisions, such as keying, weather or natural disasters, and damage sustained by colliding with stationary objects. The specific terms of vehicle insurance vary with legal regulations in each region.

Auto insurance in India deals with the insurance covers for the loss or damage caused to the automobile or its parts due to natural and man-made calamities. It provides accident cover for individual owners of the vehicle while driving and also for passengers and third-party legal liability. There are certain general insurance companies who also offer online insurance service for the vehicle.

Auto insurance in India is a compulsory requirement for all new vehicles used whether for commercial or personal use. The insurance companies have tie-ups with leading automobile manufacturers. They offer their customers instant auto quotes. Auto premium is determined by a number of factors and the amount of premium increases with the rise in the price of the vehicle. The claims of the auto insurance in India can be accidental, theft claims or third-party claims. Certain documents are required for claiming auto insurance in India, like duly signed claim form, RC copy of the vehicle, driving license copy, FIR copy, original estimate and policy copy.

There are different types of auto insurance in India:

Private Car Insurance: Private Car Insurance is the fastest growing sector in India as it is compulsory for all the new cars. The amount of premium depends on the make and value of the car, state where the car is registered and the year of manufacture. This amount can be reduced by asking the insurer for No Claim Bonus (NCB) if no claim is made for insurance in previous year.

Two Wheeler Insurance: The Two Wheeler Insurance in India covers accidental insurance for the drivers of the vehicle. The amount of premium depends on the current showroom price multiplied by the depreciation rate fixed by the Tariff Advisory Committee at the beginning of a policy period.

Commercial Vehicle Insurance: Commercial Vehicle Insurance in India provides cover for all the vehicles which are not used for personal purposes like trucks and HMVs. The amount of premium depends on the showroom price of the vehicle at the commencement of the insurance period, make of the vehicle and the place of registration of the vehicle. The auto insurance generally includes:

• Loss or damage by accident, fire, lightning, self-ignition, external explosion, burglary, housebreaking or theft, malicious act
• Liability for third party injury/death, third party property and liability to paid driver
• On payment of appropriate additional premium, loss/damage to electrical/electronic accessories

The auto insurance does not include:

• Consequential loss, depreciation, mechanical and electrical breakdown, failure or breakage
• When vehicle is used outside the geographical area
• War or nuclear perils and drunken driving

Third-party insurance

This cover is mandatory in India under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. This cover cannot be used for personal damages. This is offered at low premiums and allows for third party claims under “no fault liability. The premium is calculated through the rates provided by the Tariff Advisory Committee. This is branch of the IRDA (Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India). It covers bodily injury/accidental death and property damage.

Salient Features of Third Party Insurance

• Third party insurance is compulsory for all motor vehicles. In G. Govindan v. New India Assurance Co. Ltd., Third party risks insurance is mandatory under the statute. This provision cannot be overridden by any clause in the insurance policy.
• Third party insurance does not cover injuries to the insured himself but to the rest of the world who is injured by the insured.
• Beneficiary of third party insurance is the injured third party, the insured or the policy holder is only nominally the beneficiary of the policy. In practice the money is always paid direct by the insurance company to the third party (or his solicitor) and does not even pass through the hands of the insured person.
• In third party policies the premiums do not vary with the value of what is being insured because what is insured is the legal liability’ and it is not possible to know in advance what that liability will be.
• Third party insurance is almost entirely fault-based.(means you have to prove the fault of the insured first and also that injury occurred from the fault of the insured to claim damages from him)
• Third party insurance involves lawyers aid
• The third party insurance is unpopular with insurance companies as compared to first party insurance, because they never know the maximum amounts they will have to pay under third party policies.