Vehicle Insurance: General Questions & Discussions

[xkcd0137]

I have a 2016 Ford Ecosport. I have a few dents on left side doors, paint chipped off from the body near rear left door, a little misaligned front left door, and a few dings here and there. (Please, Don't judge me. I am bad at driving in city.)

My insurance with New India Assurance is valid till 21st November. I intend to claim insurance, hence losing my NCB. Original IDV was around 8.65 lacs, so I guess IDV for current year should be around 7.7 lacs?
From online forums I read that HDFC Ergo is reasonably priced and convenient to claim and stuff, but I am getting pretty expensive quotes (I paid a premium of 21000 at the time of purchase) from every vendor. Zero Dep is mandatory.

I have attached a link with all the quotes I could get from Turtlemint, Coverfox and Policybazaar. I don't know why but Policybazaar doesn't have an option to change IDV from mobile browser, hence they are at their minimum. https://m.imgur.com/a/shc4d

Which one should I go for?

 

[xkcd0137]

Anyone care to help?

 

[xkcd0137]

For reference -
Dent #1
Hit on the front left door by a Hyundai i10 driven by an elderly couple coz they made a blind u-turn on a busy road.

In its Original form -





After a foam wash at 3M workshop







Dent #2
Hit on the rear left door by a rusted commercial auto



Paint chipped off from the body






When I had once shown these dents to SA, he said that if I'll claim insurance, Denting/Painting will be done. But since my front left door is little misaligned I want it to be replaced. Regarding which he wasn't very sure. Should I claim insurance? Or get these dent/painted somewhere else (I am doubtful to find someone capable for this job in Kota) and keep my NCB intact?

Kindly excuse all the noob questions. Since this is my first car and first insurance claim

@MODS: Sorry for repeated posts.

 

[Prabhagar]

I would try with local garages if the NCB was considerably higher (> 30%). Otherwise this is worth losing NCB to replace the door under claim. You are lucky to have all the scratches on the same side, otherwise you will be asked to claim twice.

On IDV, please go through below and pick yours based on your use case:
https://www.bankbazaar.com/insurance/motor-insurance-guide/facts-about-idv-in-car-insurance.html

 

[deepshika]

i have some questions guys!

1. Is the NCB transferrable from my previous vehicle transferable to my new vehicle after the sale of previous; if YES than how do i go ahead with the NCB transfer?

2. Is the NCB from one insurance company transferable with the other insurance co. for the new car being bought by me?

3. what is the validity of NCB ?

4. I heard that there is something known as ILP21 and ILP23 in a policy. what is the significance of both?

will be happy to find the answers for my queries.


go for 0 depreciation. its worth !

I had read a blog ( https://www.acko.com/car-insurance/add-on-covers/ncb-protection ) that mentioned that the percentage of NCB goes on increasing as the number of consecutive no-claim years increase and can go as high as 50% of the premium.

I think this answers your 4th question. Usually the validity is one year, however, the percentage keep on increasing with increasing number of years.

 

[xkcd0137]

I would try with local garages if the NCB was considerably higher (> 30%). Otherwise this is worth losing NCB to replace the door under claim. You are lucky to have all the scratches on the same side, otherwise you will be asked to claim twice.
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Thank you for your advice. This is the 1st year of my car. How much NCB is acquired in the 1st year?

1) What to do if they don't agree to replacing the door? Get it done by some independent garage?
2) Can I push for both doors replacement?
3) My insurance will end in mid-November. When should I make the claim? As early as possible or it can be delayed till early November? I was planning after Diwali if there is no harm.

Your advice is much appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Prabhagar]

Thank you for your advice. This is the 1st year of my car. How much NCB is acquired in the 1st year?

First year NCB is 20% of your Own Damage premium (not the total premium). I am no expert on insurance claims, just taking a stab at your questions:
1. If doors are not replaced you may very well be able to pay from pocket due to reduced charges. Please check with your body shop on how confident they are in getting it approved.
2. Very less chance for this, surveyor may ask for tinkering instead.
3. If I am not wrong, claims should be initiated within a week or so from the date of incident. If your surveyor finds some scratches are old, he may reject or ask you for a second claim.

 

[xkcd0137]

First year NCB is 20% of your Own Damage premium (not the total premium). I am no expert on insurance claims, just taking a stab at your questions:
1. If doors are not replaced you may very well be able to pay from pocket due to reduced charges. Please check with your body shop on how confident they are in getting it approved.
2. Very less chance for this, surveyor may ask for tinkering instead.
3. If I am not wrong, claims should be initiated within a week or so from the date of incident. If your surveyor finds some scratches are old, he may reject or ask you for a second claim.

I went to the Ford service station today to get the estimate on the denting/painting. The SA there said that it may cost around Rs. 11,500-12,000 for denting/painting of both doors. He said that replacement of door won't happen as the misalignment is minute and can be corrected during denting. Manager there advised claiming insurance a the gain on NCB would be around Rs. 4000, which is less than the estimate. Also, it may take a week's time for the whole process. They intend to keep the vehicle for that duration.
If I go claim-insurance route, It will cost Rs. 1000 or 1500 to initiate the process which is a Compulsory deductible IMO. And manager said some Rs. 100-200 more for some nuts or bolts. I am not sure if I should be paying for bolts since I have Zero Dep.

1) Is the estimate correct? Or Am I being taken for a ride?
2) Went unprepared. I forgot to ask them what all would be done and price breakup. What all should I enquire about next time I talk to them.
3) Do I ask them for a loaner car, since I don't have any other vehicle for office commute or daily chores?

 

[Prabhagar]

1) Is the estimate correct? Or Am I being taken for a ride?
2) Went unprepared. I forgot to ask them what all would be done and price breakup. What all should I enquire about next time I talk to them.
3) Do I ask them for a loaner car, since I don't have any other vehicle for office commute or daily chores?

Zero Dep mostly does not cover consumables (nuts/bolts/oil etc). You can expect to pay max 2000 bucks out of pocket which is okay.
1. Looks okay to me.
2. Sorry I myself have never claimed insurance to be able to answer this.
3. In most cases loaner cars are not provided but worth asking.

 

[Nanofreak]

My Nano XTA insurance is expiring in 3 weeks, I got a online quote from policybazaar.com United insurance quoted 5k IDV 2.4Lac, comprehensive, (should I get zero depreciation instead?) with NCB of 20%.

The dealer quoted 8.7k, I told him to match United he refused, and said online you will have problems for claims, any one experienced this problem?

Regards
Vinod

 

[Akash1886]

My Nano XTA insurance is expiring in 3 weeks, I got a online quote from policybazaar.com United insurance quoted 5k IDV 2.4Lac, comprehensive, (should I get zero depreciation instead?) with NCB of 20%.

Sir if possible then take quote from another Tata Dealer too. Also you can ask for customer discount as well which the dealers provide. I took it for my CITY IVtec.

The dealer quoted 8.7k, I told him to match United he refused, and said online you will have problems for claims, any one experienced this problem?

I have no experience of online insurance but in my view best would be to take it in hard-copy. If the dealer refuses to lower the premium then negotiate hard for a higher IDV.

Regards

Akash

 

[xkcd0137]

A little development from my side:

Met with an accident yesterday night. Both front alloys bent and cracked. Hit big stones lying around a stranded truck. Tyres not fully damaged.

Does Insurance cover Alloys? ..and Tyres?
Can I claim Alloys and Denting/Painting in one go?

 

[allhyundaicars]

my figo's rim was covered under insurance. you can check the pics here

so i guess they should change the alloys as well. hope you have zero dep insurance including consumables cover. you can claim insurance only for one accidentor if it looks like the damage happened in the same accident.

if say your front bumper got damaged before this accident you can easily get it covered under this insurance claim but you can't claim insurance for the rear bumper since you can't explain how did the rear bumper got damaged.

 

[xkcd0137]

my figo's rim was covered under insurance.

if say your front bumper got damaged before this accident you can easily get it covered under this insurance claim but you can't claim insurance for the rear bumper since you can't explain how did the rear bumper got damaged.

I'll go to the service station tomorrow to start the claim process.

1) After replacement, can i keep the cracked alloys? I am thinking of getting them repaired by welding for future use. Or insurance company will keep them? I guess salvage charges come into play here.

2) I don't have consumables cover. How much expenditure should i expect?

3) I have already shown the dent on left doors to the service station manager. Can I still claim that I got these dents from the other stones lying on the left?

Anything else I need to keep in mind while negotiating?

 

[xkcd0137]

Update: Surveyor made a visit to service station. He has okayed replacing the Alloys but has rejected the claim for Denting/painting.

Can I make another claim for denting now? Or it wont be entertained? Coz the service station guy said that since surveyor has already clicked photos, these dents will be considered an old accident and can't be claimed. I'll have to get it done from my pocket.

What are my options now?