Most car buyers will spend a lot of energy and time poring over the exact car model they’d like to buy, the trim level, and the colour; even the accessories to go with it. But few will ever give a second thought to the insurance cover on their precious wheels. Though this is changing and the newer set of buyers is aware of the types of car insurance policies in the market, there’s a long way to go still.
Most owners tend to opt for the insurance that their car-dealer bundles with their vehicle purchase not realizing that they could be paying for what they might not need or worse, be running the risk of being under-insured. Here’s a list of must-have add-ons for your car insurance policy that you might want to keep handy for the next purchase:
The zero-dep policy has really soared in popularity in the past few years. Owners love the fact that not a single rupee has to be paid out of their pocket in an unfortunate event during the first three years of the car’s ownership. The difference in premium these days is marginal, so go for it.
The No-Claim Bonus (NCB) can work wonders by way of its compounding nature. For example, owners could get a handsome reduction in premium by the fourth year, should they have skipped making against a claim in the previous years.
Another must-have add-on for your car insurance policy is road-side assistance. Today’s cars are highly technical in nature. In many instances, they cannot be attended to by a small-time independent repairs operator and this is where having road-side assistance helps. This could include assistance such as battery swaps, flat-bed towing and so on.
Similarly, gone are the days when the key-maker could jimmy the lock open from the outside in the unfortunate event of you having left the key behind or lost it. Todays advanced, computer controlled key-fobs are tough to replicate and the sensors mean that replacements can be expensive. Insurers usually tend to cover such instances as an add-on, making it a nice-to-have convenience.
There are multiple types of car insurance add-ons out there. The key is to strike a balance between which ones to buy into and which to leave off the policy. The choice varies across owners and ultimately, it is up to you to decide!
