Importance of having a personal accident cover

It is important to have an accidental policy as part of your insurance portfolio. It will always provide financial support to the policyholder if he is disabled after an accident.

Feb 28, 2015 03:02 IST others Mahalakshmi Hariharan |

Life is uncertain…accidents can happen any time. During such times, it is always better to be finally prepared to handle them. Just like you should have a life insurance and a medical insurance with you, it is equally important to have a personal accident cover. Personal accident schemes cover the policyholder against death or disability due to an accident. If you check, all general insurance companies will offer these policies, but very unlikely that an agent tries to sell this product. Insurance agents get very low commissions on a personal accident insurance policy so they always try to sell it with some other insurance product like a life insurance product. You could always enhance the cover if you are willing to pay an extra premium.
 
It is very important to have an accidental policy as part of your insurance portfolio. It will always provide financial support to the policyholder if he is disabled after an accident. At the same time, even minor accidents like fracturing an arm, a leg while playing a game or falling off a bicycle are covered in the policy. But it is wise to check all the details carefully.
 
Most insurance companies offer coverage against accidental death or permanent disability due to an accident with different sums insured like Rs 3 lakh, 5 lakh, 10 lakh, 15 lakh, 20 lakh and so on.  Company policies cover different types of accidents like road, rail accidents, accidents due to natural calamities and arising out of terrorism or terrorist acts.
 
Most companies also offer accident insurance to their employees thorough a group cover. However, this is a very basic cover and may not offer the benefits as what a standalone policy would do. Experts suggest that one should look at buying an accident cover with a rider along with a life insurance policy, if the company’s cover is insufficient.
 
When it comes to the premium charged, private insurance players offer a higher cover and a wider range of benefits, so charge a higher premium. Ideally, a policyholder can get a cover of up to eight times of his annual salary. Apart from the death and permanent disability cover, you could also get an additional benefit against partial and temporary disability. It is always better to ask your insurance company about other benefits and understand the terms and conditions of the same. For instance, check if the hospitalization benefit can be availed after 24 hours of the patient getting admitted or if there is a specific duration. Also check if there is a waiting period attached to the policy. Keep all the documents handy while making a claim. If you do not have a personal accident policy, get one today…it will give financial support to your family, in case there’s an emergency.

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