Why You Should Buy Long Term Two Wheeler Insurance Cover

Once, when renewing his bike insurance policy, Neerav came across long-term two-wheeler plans. What a blessing they were! He bought a plan once and was free from the hassles of renewals for 3 straight years! He couldn’t have asked for more.

Thanks to IRDA’s current regulations, you, like Neerav, can find long term insurance plans for your two-wheelers. These plans have a term of 2 or 3 years and cut down on the inconvenience of annual renewals. Currently only two-wheeler insurance policies have a long-term tenure. Do you know how beneficial these long-term policies are? Let’s find out:

Long-term policies reduce the hassles of annual renewals: Renewing the two-wheeler insurance policy year-on-year is a hassle. Who remembers the renewal date! Even if the insurance company sends a reminder, most of you seem to put off renewals till the last possible minute. The result – you forget and the policy lapses. A lapse is bad and should be avoided. Long term plans cut down on the hassle of regular renewals. You pay the premium once and enjoy the coverage for a longer tenure.

The premium rates are lower compared to annual plans: The premium of a long-term policy is cheaper compared to the premiums of three years’ annual bike insurance policy added together. This is because, the premium rate increases every year for third party coverage. But, when you buy the policy for a longer tenure, the premium gets frozen and doesn’t change every year. Moreover, insurance companies also give you a premium discount on the ‘own damage’ premium if you buy a policy for long term. As such, you benefit from lower premiums.

Your IDV also remains constant: The Insured Declared Value (IDV) of your bike is the market price of your bike adjusted for depreciation. Every year, as your bike gets old your IDV reduces. A lower IDV means you get a lower claim in case of theft of your bike or in case of total loss. In annual policies, the IDV reduces every year. However, in long-term policies, the IDV remains the same. Thus, you get the benefit of a higher claim amount if your bike gets stolen or is damaged beyond repairs.

You don’t lose out on the No Claim Discount: Every year, when you don’t make a claim in your two-wheeler insurance plan, you earn a discount in next year’s premium. This discount helps you lower your premium outgoes. Moreover, the discount is cumulative in nature and increases every claim-free year. However, if you make any claim in an annual policy, any accumulated discount you have earned becomes zero. You don’t get any discounts in the next year’s premium and thereafter, you start from scratch. The case is different in long-term insurance plans. Under these plans too you get a No Claim discount which accumulates every claim-free year. However, even when you make an insurance claim you don’t lose out on the entire discount. The earned discount is simply reduced a little but it still gives you a discount in the subsequent premiums. For instance, in an annual policy, if you do not make any claim for 3 consecutive policy years, you earn a discount of 35%. This discount becomes 0% if you make any subsequent claim. In case of long-term plans, you earn a discount of 30% which is reduced to 25% if you make one claim in the first policy year or 20% if you make a claim in the second policy year. Thus, you don’t lose out on the discount.

So, in conclusions, long-term two-wheeler insurance plans are the best bet. They eliminate the need of annual renewals, preserve the bike’s IDV and also save premium outgoes. Neerav found a smart solution for his smart self in the form of a long-term two-wheeler insurance plan. What about you?