Everyone likes discounts. When you buy something at a lower cost, there is a sense of accomplishment attached to it. This applies to insurance as well. The mandatory Third-party Liability insurance rates are fixed by the Insurance Regulatory And Development Authority Of India (IRDAI), and are standard across the industry. Thus, you won’t be able to get lower rates for that. However, when it comes to purchasing Comprehensive Car Insurance online, there is a lot of scope for discounts.
Read ahead to know how you can get discounts while purchasing car insurance online.
Security
By enhancing your car’s security, you are helping the insurance company as you are taking measures to minimize car theft. Thus, the insurance company will provide a discount if you install anti-theft devices in your car. However, these devices must be approved by the Automotive Research Association of India in order to receive the discount on insurance premium.
Membership
You can avail a discount on insurance premium if you are a member an Automobile Association. You might want to check their nominal membership rates and gauge if becoming a member is beneficial for you apart from receiving a discount on car insurance premium.
Deductible
There are two types of deductibles, compulsory and voluntary. During claim settlement, the insured party also has to contribute some part of claim amount from their side. This amount is the compulsory deductible. You can opt to go for a voluntary deductible in addition to compulsory deductible.
By doing this, you are declaring to the insurance company that if there is a claim, you will contribute a definite amount. If you opt for voluntary deductible, the insurance company will charge you less premium (compared to not opting for voluntary deductible) and pay accordingly during claim settlement.
No Claim Bonus
Insurance companies provide a bonus for safe driving! The No Claim Bonus (NCB) is a discount offered by insurance companies to the insured while renewing their policy. It is available to those who have not made any claims during the policy period.
This NCB is carried forward to the next policy period upon renewal, provided there are no claims and the policy is renewed in time. You can keep your NCB intact even if you renew your policy after the expiry date but it shouldn’t exceed 90 days after the expiration.
The percentage of discount received on car insurance premium increases every claim-free year. You can get as much as 50% discount thanks to NCB which is calculated based on the following table.
| No. Of Claim-free Years | Discount |
| One claim-free year | 20% |
| Two consecutive claim-free years | 25% |
| Three consecutive claim-free years | 35% |
| Four consecutive claim-free years | 45% |
| Five consecutive claim-free years | 50% |
Policy Renewal
As mentioned above, timely policy renewal can help you save money in the form of NCB. If you do not renew your policy in a timely manner, the insurance company might want to inspect your car and increase your insurance premium.
You can switch your insurance provider during renewal if you find another insurer who is offering you desired coverage and better services at a lower rate. You can continue receiving your NCB after changing your insurer as well.
Research and Buy
While it is good to compare insurance and purchase the cheapest policy, one must also keep in mind the coverage offered by that policy. The primary aim of insurance is securing yourself financially against losses arising out of unforeseen events. Add-ons can help you to strengthen your policy. Thus, it is important to know your ideal coverage and then hunt for the right car insurance online. A slightly expensive insurance policy with ideal coverage is better than a cheap policy with less insurance coverage.